'Park was finally looking lovely, and then a truck smashed into it'

Abi Murray, 44, is secretary of The Old Library Wood collective on Rosary Road.

On Monday, the park's wall - including the mural - was ploughed into by the Royal Mail lorry driver shortly before 6am.

A Royal Mail lorry crashed through a wall in Rosary Road, Norwich, on Monday morning. (Image: ITV News Anglia)

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Mrs Murray said how sad volulnteer members felt at seeing the park's wall totally destroyed by the driver - but stressed that the artwork, which was painted by Beverley Coraldean on plywood mounted to the wall, was hopefully salvageable.

"We were working on the mural for about three years. A lot of that time was spent getting planning permission from Norwich City Council - which owns the space - and proofing the picture," she said. "It was a very lengthy process.

"It's a shame because the park was really respected by the community. We had turned its reputation as a spot for antisocial behaviour and drug taking around.

The park's mural before a Royal Mail truck ploughed into the wall it was mounted to (Image: Supplied by The Old Library Wood Collective)

"It was finally looking lovely, then a truck came and smashed into it."

But Mrs Murray said the "most sickening thing of all" was not the physical damage, it was the fact Rosary Road was a well-used school run and the lorry could easily have injured a child.

She said she felt the Royal Mail vans were "too big for the road", adding: "It's a miracle the driver, or worse yet a schoolchild, weren't hurt."

The Old Library Wood Volunteers have spent a huge amount of time making the area inviting and safe for residents (Image: Supplied by The Old Library Wood Collective)

A Royal Mail spokesperson said the company was carrying out a full investigation into what happened, but added that nobody was injured and the vehicle was empty of mail at the time.

Moving forward, Mrs Murray said the site had been cordoned off with fencing, broadband cables damaged in the crash had been fixed and the council had cleared up the mess and bricks strewn all over the park.

She said: "We're hoping the city council will be able to repair the wall and that all the events we have planned for the summer can still go ahead."

Two book swaps are recent features to the site and have been very well-used and respected. Mrs Murray said that contrary to expectations they haven't been vandalised whatsoever (Image: The Old Library Wood Collective)

Norwich City Council confirmed it was liaising with the collective about how to rebuild the park wall.