A fire has destroyed most of one of South America’s most popular museums, resulting in the death of one man tackling the blaze.

São Paulo’s governor, Geraldo Alckmin, said that firefighter Ronaldo Pereira da Cruz died in hospital. The governor added that because the Museum of the Portuguese Language (Museu da Língua Portuguesa) is closed on Mondays, more casualties were likely averted.

The blaze took place on 21 December gutting the 100-year-old Brazilian cultural landmark. The museum in São Paulo is seen as the top educational resource for the history and evolution of the Portuguese language.

The governor pledged state support to the museum saying, “It will be rebuilt,” and adding that the museum “reflects the soul of the Brazilian people”.

The museum was officially opened in March 2006, welcoming more than 1.6 million visitors in its first three years of operation.

Thanks to archiving and digital preservation, cultural loss is believed to be minimal, with museum curator Isa Ferraz stating that many of the pieces have been “backed up”.

Firefighters and civil engineers are currently examining the stability of the building before proceeding to determine the cause of the blaze.