One of Easter Island's most famous residents, a moai statue, was destroyed in an accident after a runaway pickup truck crashed into the sacred statue.
According to local media reports, a Chilean man who lives on the island was arrested on March 1 and charged with damaging a national monument after his truck crashed into the sculpture. Authorities believe the accident was caused by the truck's brake failing, allowing it to roll downhill and crash into one of the stone figures and the ahu, a platform the statue sits on.
The president of Easter Island's Rapa Nui people, who inhabit the island, told CNN the damage to site was "incalculable."
Moai statues were carved by the Rapa Nui people on Easter Island between 1250 and 1500. The statues form a ring around the island and are believed to have been sculpted to honor chieftains or other important figures in the tribe who had passed away. The statues were placed on stone platforms, known as ahu, which are tombs for the people the statues honored. More than 12,000 tourists visit the nearly 1,000 carved figures on Easter Island every month. Some also believe the statues may have been ways to show where fresh water sources were located.
The statues are considered sacred and have a high religious value for the Rapa Nui people, and damaging one is considered an offense to their culture. In 2008, a Finnish tourist was fined $17,000 and banned from the island for three years after he chipped a piece off the ear of one moai.
The monolithic carvings were sculpted from the solidified volcanic ash left behind by the Rano Raraku volcano. They are all one piece with the average weight of 20 tons and average height of about 20 feet tall or higher. At least one unfinished statue stands 69 feet tall and is estimated to weigh an incredible 270 tons.
Easter Island was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1994, with much of the area protected with its own national park.
Photo: Getty Images