76 people, including players and staff of the Brazilian first division football team Chapecoense, have died when a plane crashed in remote Colombian mountains on Monday night.The team were on their way from Bolivia to Medellin International Airport ahead of the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana final with Colombian side Atletico Nacional.
It is understood that just five passengers – including two players – have survived, with defender Alan Ruschel and goalkeeper Jackson Follmann reported to be among those pulled alive from the wreckage.
Another goalkeeper, Danilo, survived the crash but later died in hospital, according to local news reports.
The journalist Rafael Hensel and crew members Ximena Suarez and Erwin Tumiri also believed to have survived.
The footballers had to change their flight and board the plane that crashed after Brazilian aviation authorities prevented them from taking a charter aircraft, it has been claimed.Aeronautica Civil said in a statement that the plane had been carrying ’22 footballers, 28 companions and technical staff, 22 journalists and nine crew members’.
The same plane carried the Argentina national team to a fixture in Brazil earlier this month and had also previously transported the Venezuela national side.
The first leg of the final, scheduled for Wednesday, has been postponed, while the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol) said it was suspending ‘all activities.’
In a remarkable gesture, Atletico Nacional lobbied the South American federation and suggested Chapecoense should be awarded the trophy.
The Brazilian football federation said it would wait to establish the full details of the plane crash before deciding whether to suspend the domestic league.
One round of fixtures remains in the Brazilian top-flight this coming weekend, with relegation places yet to be decided, while the second leg of the Cup final is scheduled to be played on Wednesday in the southern city of Porto Alegre. Local club Gremio defeated Atletico Mineiro 3-1 in the first leg in Belo Horizonte.
Chapecoense issued a short statement that read: ‘May God be with our athletes, officials, journalists and other guests travelling with our delegation.’
Stunned supporters of the team – who had enjoyed a fairytale rise through the divisions – gathered outside their stadium in Chapeco as they waited for news.
The British Aerospace Avro RJ85 short-haul plane, operated by a charter airline called LaMia declared an emergency at 10pm local time (3am UK time) on Monday night after suffering power failures while flying through the mountainous Antioquia Department.
Source dailymail
