About 80 of Easter Island’s iconic statues were damaged, some “irreparably,” by a fire that broke out earlier this week, authorities of the country and island said on Friday.
“The fire in the Rano Raraku volcano quarry has been extinguished (…) but has caused irreparable damage to the cultural heritage of humanity,” said Chilean President Gabriel Boric.
The fire devastated hundreds of hectares of Rapa Nui National Park and reached the Rano Raraku Volcano area, home to the quarry where the ancient Rapa Nui indigenous civilization made their moai statues. The site houses 416 of these sculptures in various stages of manufacture.
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The flames, smoke and water damaged 20% of the statues on the site – including about 100 in the quarry – said the island’s mayor Pedro Edmunds, adding that one had suffered “irreparable damage”.
“It will stay there as it is until we assess the damage, and then we will urge humanity to see what solution we can come up with,” the chosen one stated, explaining that the flames are fast due to the shortage Guards in the park are progressing, which he believes is due to the government’s “abandonment of the island”.
Also, due to the geography, the fire engines could not get directly to the scene of the fire, which was probably of criminal origin. “This fire was started by ranchers for pasture. Everything points to it,” said Chilean Agriculture Minister Esteban Valenzuela.
Isolated in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, 3500 km from the Chilean coast, the Polynesian cultured Easter Island is known worldwide for its impressive megaliths of mysterious origins, declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco. Some can grow up to 20 meters high and weigh up to 80 tons.
The fire came three months after the island reopened to world tourism in early August after two years of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Before the pandemic, the island, whose main source of income is tourism, welcomed 160,000 visitors a year with two flights a day.