Emergency workers have recovered 25 bodies from the site of a plane crash in Colombia and six people have been rescued alive, according to officials.

The chartered plane had 81 people on board, including players from a top-flight Brazilian football club, when it came down in mountains near the city of Medellin.

Unconfirmed reports have named two of the survivors as Chapecoense Real players Alan Ruschel and Danilo. Pictures posted to social media by the players themselves suggested that the club's delegation, which included the first team squad, coaches and journalists, represented the majority of the passengers.

The plane came down outside its destination of Medellin after the pilots reported an electrical failure at around 10pm local time (3am GMT) on Monday night.

A rescue helicopter was dispatched but forced to turn back due to lack of visibility in the poor weather conditions, and emergency workers could only access the crash site by road.

The Colombian air space authority, Aerocivil, confirmed six people were rescued before efforts were suspended at around 3am local time due to heavy rain.

They consisted of three players, two crew members and a journalist.

The number of survivors could be set to rise slightly, with the mayor of nearby La Ceja quoting firefighters as saying there were around 10 people pulled out alive.

But Medellín Police General José Acevedo painted a bleaker picture, telling reporters: "We think there are 75 dead."