The Municipality of Easter Island shared images on its Facebook page after a fire, caused by the nearby Rano Raraku volcano, damaged the Moai. The fire has razed more than 100 hectares, damaging the famous statues (Moai), created by a Polynesian tribe more than 500 years ago.
Volcano fire damages Easter Island Moai
The fire reportedly started on Monday last week and was caused by the nearby Rano Raraku volcano. The blaze ravaged 100 hectares of the island and irreparably damaged some of the famous stone-carved statues, or Moai as they are known. According to local Indigenous and Chilean authorities, the stone heads and other archaeological elements on the island were damaged.
The Moai were created by a seafaring Polynesian tribe more than 500 years ago according to indigenous officials. Ariki Tepano is the director of the indigenous Ma’u Henua community, tasked with managing the Rapa Nui Natural Park. Tepano said in a statement on Thursday that the damage is “irreparable,” adding that the consequences of the fire “go beyond what the eyes can see.”
Meanwhile, the Rapa Nui municipality wrote on its Facebook page, about the fire on Saturday. It quoted President Gabriel Boric as categorizing the fire that affected the Rano Raraku sector of the island as “irreparable damage to the cultural heritage of humanity.”
The municipality added that the park is closed to tourists as the conservationists investigate the extent of the damage to the statues. Moreover, the government has announced that the coordination of institutions on the island will be optimized and that Conaf will have a permanent forest brigade on the island.
The government announced that the coordination of institutions will be optimized and that CONAF will have a permanent forest brigade on Easter Island.
Officials assessing the damage on Easter Island
Meanwhile, Carolina Pérez Dattari, Undersecretary of Cultural Heritage in Chile, said officials from the country’s National Monuments Council (CNM) are currently on the island, assessing the damages from the fire.
According to the CNM, the composition of the statues can be adversely impacted by exposure to high temperatures. Reportedly, this could cause large fractures that could affect the integrity of the Moai.
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Easter Island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site lying some 2,174 miles off the coast of Chile and is known as the most remote inhabited island in the world. Meanwhile, due to its iconic giant Moai monuments, the island has long been popular with travelers from around the globe. The Rapa Nui National Park features 386 Moai carved from solid basalt.
It is said that Polynesian seafarers first discovered the island around 900 years ago and the Moai have puzzled researchers as to why the huge statues were placed there. However, recent studies have suggested that the Moai could relate to where the island settlers found undersea freshwater springs.
On UNESCO’s website, it describes the Polynesian society as settling on the island and establishing a “powerful, imaginative and original tradition of monumental sculpture and architecture, free from any external influence.” The website states that the unrivaled landscape where the enormous stone figures known as Moai were erected continues to fascinate people from all over the world.
This isn’t the first time the iconic site has faced problems. Shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic closed the island to tourism, Easter Island was grappling with a series of bad behavior from tourists. They were known to take selfies with the Moai from different angles to make it look like they were picking the noses of the statues.
Moreover, some two years ago a Chilean resident on the island was arrested after his truck crashed into one of the Moai, smashing the ahu (platform) on which the statue stood.