A forest fire that swept through 247 acres of a park preserve on Easter Island, seriously damaging some of the famed standing-head statues that draw thousands of visitors to the Chile-owned island has left Chilean officials and local residents in a sharp disagreement.
Park administrator Ariki Tepano, wrote on Facebook that “The damage to some of the giant head statues is irreparable and with consequences beyond what your eyes can see.” The statues, which range from six to 65 feet high, were created between the 10th and 16th centuries by the Rapa Nui people.
Chilean officials had said that the fire was caused by the nearby Rano Raraku volcano, which is also part of the Rapa Nui National Park. Rapa Nui is also the original name of the island.
But Rapa Nui Mayor Pedro Edmunds Paoa told radio reporters he suspects arson. Paoa said he believes the fire was “not an accident” and that “all the fires on Rapa Nui are caused by human beings,” and criticized the Chilean government for not providing sufficient resources.
“There is no money to prevent fires on Easter Island in the more than 32,000 archaeological sites. To prevent fire, we need to have guards permanently at the sites,” he said.
