Chile's former president Sebastian Pinera, a billionaire tycoon who twice held the South American nation's top job, died Tuesday in a helicopter crash, his office said in a statement."It is with deep regret that we announce the death of the former president of the Republic of Chile," his office said in a statement.
Chile has declared a state of emergency as it battles raging forest fires throughout the country that have killed at least 46 people, and authorities say the death toll is likely to rise.
Firefighters wrestled Sunday with massive forest fires that broke out in central Chile two days earlier, as officials extended curfews in cities most heavily affected by the blazes and said at least 64 people were killed. The fires have been burning with the highest intensity around the city of Viña del Mar, where a famous botanical garden founded in 1931 was destroyed by the flames on Sunday. Several neighborhoods on the eastern edge of Viña del Mar have been devoured by flames and smoke, trapping some people in their homes.