A plane carrying 81 people, including a
Brazilian football team, has crashed on its
approach to the city of Medellin in Colombia,
officials say. Details are unclear but some reports say there are
survivors. The chartered plane, flying from Bolivia, was carrying
members of the Chapecoense football team, airport
officials said. The team was due to play in the final of the Copa
Sudamericana against Medellin team Atletico
Nacional. The first leg of the final of the cup, South America's
second most important club competition, was
scheduled for Wednesday, but has now been
suspended. The team, from the city of Chapeco, was promoted to
Brazil's first division in 2014 and reached the final last
week after a victory against Argentina's San Lorenzo. Reports say the plane, carrying 72 passengers and
nine crew, crashed in a mountainous area outside the
city shortly before midnight local time (05:00 GMT). Medellin's Mayor Federico Gutierrez described it as "a
tragedy of huge proportions", but added it was
possible there were survivors. The Jose Maria Cordova de Rionegro airport, which
serves Medellin, posted on its Twitter account:
"Confirmed, the aircraft licence number CP2933 was
carrying the team @ChapecoenseReal. Apparently
there are survivors."