(Born: Fernando Borrego, Died: November 25, 2002)

HAVANA, Nov. 27 (AP) — The Cuban singer Polo Montañez, whose country-style music was hugely popular throughout Latin America, died on Tuesday night from head injuries suffered in a car crash, his recording company said today. He was 47. A spokesman for Lusafrica, the record company, said Mr. Montañez died at a military hospital here. He had been in a coma after suffering severe injuries in the accident, which occurred on Nov. 20. He was driving a group of relatives home from a family party when his car collided with a tractor-trailer on a highway outside here. His stepson, Mirel González García, 25, was killed, and Mr. Montañez’s wife, Adis García, was injured.  Mr. Montañez, whose real name was Fernando Borrego, came from a humble, provincial background to become a musical hit three years ago.  He described his song “Guarijo Natural,” which topped the charts in Latin America, as a “self-portrait” of a simple country boy who falls in love and enjoys life.  Mr. Montañez’s success began in Colombia in the late 1990’s. Later he toured Latin America, where he gained a huge following, and Europe.