Truck crashes into sacred statue on Easter Island - causes 'incalculable damage'
Owner had wedged a rock under the wheel to compensate for a broken parking brake...
One of the world renowned moai statues on Easter Island has suffered “incalculable” damage after being hit by a pick-up truck.
A Chilean resident of Rapa Nui and owner of the Chevrolet which crashed into one of the statues, has been arrested for damaging the national monument at the UNESCO World Heritage site.
Now, the mayor of Easter Island has called for vehicle restrictions to be introduced around its archaeological locations in Chile.
Police believe the truck rolled down a hill and hit the statue's ceremonial platform after the owner had wedged a rock under the front wheel to compensate for a broken parking brake.
The island's famous monolithic heads are each between 1,000 and 500 years old, with the largest measuring up to 40 feet tall and weighing 75 tons.
It was only last June that experts from the British Museum had travelled to Easter Island to discuss measures on how to help preserve the statues.