ART trail organisers are urging trail-goers to "be gentle" after two sculptures were left damaged in Southend.

The Herd In The City trail includes 46 large elephant sculptures and 72 baby elephants across the streets of Southend, Shoeburyness and Leigh.

Trail organisers noticed the two elephants named Nelly and Waterline were "unstable" on Saturday.

Echo: Artistic - Nelly in Pier Hill was one of the elephants removedArtistic - Nelly in Pier Hill was one of the elephants removed

A spokesman for Herd In The City said: “While we were out checking on the herd, we noticed a couple of our elephants, Nelly and Waterline, were unstable.

“Unfortunately, they have had to be removed from the trail to be fixed.

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“We are devastated that two of our beautiful elephants have had to leave temporarily, but we hope to have them both back out on display very soon.”

Last week, the sculptures were transported and placed in the city by Herd In The City’s logistics partner Atlantic Pacific Global Logistics.

Echo: Vandalised - Waterline near Metro Bank in Southend High Street was also removedVandalised - Waterline near Metro Bank in Southend High Street was also removed (Image: Simon Murdoch)

The trail, which the Echo is a proud media sponsor for, will be in place until Monday, September 4.

The spokesman added: “They are friendly creatures who like being hugged and having their photos taken.

“However, they do need to be treated with respect, and we would ask all of our trail-goers to be gentle and to refrain from climbing or swinging on them.”