A fatal plane crash in Columbia took the lives of 71 people, including most of a Brazillian soccer team. The plane took off from Santa Cruz de la Sierra in Bolivia en route to Medellin, when the plane crashed into a hillside near Medellin, Colombia. They were carrying the first-division Brazilian soccer team, Chapecoense. The team was on their way to play in the finals of the Copa Sudamerica finals against Atletico Nacional in Medellin. The 71 people who died included 19 players from the Brazilian soccer club, all of its coaching staff and 20 journalists on the way to cover the soccer game. Three soccer players, two crew members and one journalist survived, Colombian authorities said.

Bolivia’s Public Works Ministry has launched an investigation into LaMia, a Bolivian charter airline, its owners, and executives. The Civil Aviation Authorities of Bolivia suspended flying permits for both the airline’s operator’s certificate and the “permit to operate.”  According to reports, the plane had no fuel left. A crew member onboard told air traffic controllers, “The plane is in total electric failure and without fuel” (CNN.com). Every aircraft must have enough fuel to finish its route, taking into consideration possible delays and circling the landing strip. However, even if the plane had filled its fuel tanks before leaving Bolivia, it would have arrived at Medellín pushing its fuel range limit. The jet can travel up to 3,000 kilometers without refueling. But  Medellín’s airport is 2,975 kilometers away from Santa Cruz de la Sierra, the departure airport.

Chapecoense represents Chapeco, a southern city of about 200,000 more than 800 miles southwest of Rio de Janeiro. The team is ninth in Brazil’s Serie A league and has surprised many with their performance in the tournament this year. The Copa Sudamerica final is the second-biggest international club competition in South America. The Chapecoense team was having an amazing season. “It’s a Cinderella football story. They’ve only been in the top division in Brazil for the last couple of years, and they’ve reached the Copa Sudamericana final,” Keir Radnedge of World Soccer magazine told CNN. “What they have achieved in the last couple of years was just amazing.”

Brazilian soccer great Pele expressed his condolences, tweeting, “The Brazilian football family is in mourning. This is a tragedy. I send my condolences to the families of the deceased. Rest in peace.” Colombian soccer team Atlético Nacional urged South America’s football governing body to award the Copa Sudamericana title to the Brazilian team. A memorial service was scheduled in place of the game at the Atanasio Girardot Stadium in Medellin where the two teams were supposed to meet. The fans of both teams attended wearing white and carrying candles “to honor all the victims of this tragedy.”

The three players who survived, Alan Ruschel, Jakson Follman and Zampier Neto, are still in the hospital with their conditions unknown. The soccer community worldwide is shocked and saddened by the loss of a great team. Officials are encouraging people to keep the victims and survivors in your thoughts.