Billionaire coal magnate Chris Cline, 60, – who once dated Tiger Woods’s ex-wife Elin Nordegren – dies in a helicopter crash off the coast of the Bahamas along with his daughter and five others
- Chris Cline, 60, and six others were killed in a helicopter crash near Bahamas
- Cline and six others were en route to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, when crash took place
- Cline’s daughter, a mechanic, and four friends were also on board helicopter
- West Virginia governor tweeted his condolences on Thursday
Chris Cline, the billionaire coal magnate from West Virginia who once dated Tiger Woods’s ex-wife Elin Nordegren, has been killed in a helicopter crash alongside his daughter and five others on Thursday off the coast of the Bahamas.
He died a day before his 61st birthday after their helicopter crashed off the coast of the Bahamas as it was flying back to the United States, The Register-Herald reported on Thursday.
Cline’s death was confirmed on Twitter by West Virginia Governor Jim Justice.
‘Today we lost a WV superstar and I lost a very close friend,’ Justice wrote on his Twitter account.
‘Our families go back to the beginning of the Cline empire – Pioneer Fuel.
Chris Cline, the billionaire coal magnate from West Virginia who once dated Tiger Woods’s ex-wife Elin Nordegren, is dead. He died less than a day before he was set to turn 61 years of age
Nordegren (left) is the ex-wife of golf legend Tiger Woods (right). They divorced in 2010
‘Chris Cline built an empire and on every occasion was always there to give.
‘What a wonderful, loving, and giving man.
‘Cathy and I are praying for his family and all those involved in this tragedy.’
A friend of Cline’s told The Register-Herald that the helicopter took off from the Bahamas and was en route to Fort Lauderdale when it crashed into the Atlantic Ocean.
Cline’s daughter, David Jude, Delaney Wykle, two unidentified friends, and a helicopter mechanic from Florida were also said to be on board the ill-fated chopper.
Cline died less than a day before he was set to turn 61 years of age
Cline was reportedly in a helicopter with six other people. The helicopter took off from the Bahamas and was headed to Fort Lauderdale when it crashed into the Atlantic Ocean. The above image is a stock photo of Hope Town in the Bahamas
He was the founder of Foresight Energy, the company that has grown into a coal mining empire.
In 2015, he sold most of his stake in the publicly traded company for $1.4billion, according to Forbes.
He died with an estimated net worth of $1.8billion.
Cline was married twice and had two sons and two daughters.
His first wife, Sabrina, died of breast cancer in 1987. He remarried in 1993 and then divorced seven years later.
In 2013, Cline began a relationship with Nordegren, who divorced the legendary golfer Woods in 2010.
The couple was together for a year before splitting up. In 2016, they reconciled before once again breaking up.
Nordegren, 39, was photographed recently with her new love interest, former NFL star Jordan Cameron.
The two are soon expecting a child.