Park Hill in Croydon, Pic: Roberto Stifano

Park Hill in Croydon has been closed for eight days after a stag made its way on to the grounds and officials failed to remove the animal. Eastlondonlines ventured to the streets of Croydon to find out the locals’ opinions on how the whole affair has affected them.

Barbara Garcia, 20 from Sydenham:

Barbara Garcia, Pic: Monica Winanto

“For me, eight days is actually quite a lot of time. I understand that an authority are trying to relocate it, but is it really necessary to close a whole park down just because of that? I don’t think so. If they did so for safety measures, how come it’s been more than a week and the stag is still around?”

Damon Inman, 20 from Waddon:

Damon Inman, Pic: Monica Winanto

“If the animal represents a threat for people in general, then this whole thing should have been resolved as soon as the council found out that the stag was on the loose. Why would you have to close Park Hill just to contain it in there? What about the people that live nearby or visit the park often? To be honest it doesn’t make any sense how the council is handling it, at least not to me.”

Luke Williams, 24 from West Croydon:

Luke Williams, Pic: Monica Winanto

“Instead of leaving the stag wandering around Park Hill like it is its new home, those in charge should go in there and take it out. They prefer to feed the stag rather than open the park and get rid of it? That’s absurd. I honestly don’t think it’s easier to leave the animal trapped there than putting it to sleep and relocating it. It might take time, but a week sounds like too much.”

By Monica Winanto and Roberto Stifano