Easter Island fire causes ‘irreparable’ damage to sacred statues

‘The damage caused by the fire can’t be undone,’ says Easter Island mayor

A devastating fire has charred several of the famous statues on Easter Island, officials have said.

The country’s cultural heritage undersecretary, Carolina Perez Dattari, said that the blaze that started on Monday engulfed an unknown number of statues — also known as moai — and affected nearly 60 hectares (148 acres) of land.

The moai were carved by a Polynesian tribe more than 500 years ago. Easter Island has nearly 1,000 of these statues.