One of Easter Island’s iconic stone sentinels known as the Moai was irreparably damaged recently by a pickup truck that may have had faulty brakes, according to Smithsonian Magazine. Officials have arrested an island resident and charged him with damaging a national monument.
A runaway truck careened down a hillside before crashing into and toppling the statue, causing “incalculable” damage, reports El Mercurio de Valparaíso. The investigation into the incident remains ongoing. In response to the crash, Easter Island Mayor Pedro Edmunds Paoa has called for motor restrictions to be put in place across the area.