CHAPECÓ: The bodies of 50 players, coaches and staff from a Brazilian football team tragically wiped out in a plane crash in Colombia arrived home Saturday for a massive funeral.
Fireworks lit up the sky over the stadium in Chapeco as two Brazilian Air Force planes transporting the team's coffins touched down at the southern city's airport in pouring rain.
The coffins, draped in the green flag of the club, Chapecoense Real, were unloaded onto a red carpet under military escort as victims' family and friends watched with a mix of sobs and cheers.
The small city is holding a huge funeral to honor its little team that could, cut down at the height of its glory.
The unsung club was having a fairytale season until the charter plane flying it to the biggest match in its history ran out of fuel and smashed into the mountains outside Medellin on Monday night, killing 71 people.
The city is expecting some 100,000 people -- half its population -- to descend on Conda Arena, the stadium where just 10 days ago Chapecoense were thrilling their fans.
"I came to pay a final tribute from the fans to our team," said architect Alexandre Bledin, 34, wearing the club's jersey.
"I still can't believe what happened."
"Chapecoense is in our hearts, it's our family," said Patricia Carraro, a 32-year-old cashier.
The arrival was delayed by an outpouring of emotion along the way.
During a refueling stop in the Amazon city of Manaus, the coffins were consolidated from three planes onto two, for logistical reasons. They took off two hours late because local authorities and people showed up at the airport to pay tribute to the crash victims, the Air Force said.
In Chapeco, they will go on a funeral procession to the stadium and be laid out on the pitch.
Brazilian President Michel Temer met the planes on arrival and will attend the memorial at the stadium.
The coach of the Brazilian national team, Tite, and FIFA chief Gianni Infantino will also attend. The latter canceled a trip to Australia to be there.
Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2016
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