Teen girl who lost mom, dad and sister in Kobe Bryant helicopter crash had to travel to LA to help ID bodies
A DEVASTATED teenage girl who lost both her parents and little sister in the Kobe Bryant helicopter crash had the heart-wrenching task of traveling to Los Angeles County to help identify their bodies, her grandfather revealed.
College baseball coach John Altobelli, 56, was with his youngest daughter Alyssa, 13, and wife Keri, 46, when the chopper crashed in Calabsasas on Sunday morning, killing all nine people on board, including and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna.
John’s dad Jim Altobelli, 85, told how the coach’s surviving daughter Lexi, 16, left her home in Newport Coast, Orange County, with her older half-brother JJ - a scout for the Red Sox - to take part in the identification process.
Jim, 85, an industrial diamond wheel salesman, told The Sun: “It’s very difficult to go through, you don’t expect something like that to happen.
“I certainly expected to die before John. He will be sorely missed by everybody.
“John’s surviving daughter Lexi is with his eldest son from another marriage, JJ.
“They went up for the identification of the bodies.
“I don’t know if Lexi is taking part in the identification process.
“They went up together but I haven’t been able to see or talk to them yet.
“I’m sure they would take Lexi’s age into account so I’m hoping there wasn’t a lot of trauma involved.
“Lexi is 16 and we have to get everybody together to figure out what’s going to happen.”
Three bodies were recovered from the crash site on Monday - .
The remains have been removed and will undergo coroner's office examinations in the coming days, officials told The Sun.
Alyssa and her parents were traveling with Kobe, Gianna and the others to attend the Mamba Academy in Thousand Oaks, California to play basketball when their helicopter smashed into a hillside in nearby Calabasas in foggy conditions on Sunday morning.
Jim explained that John had become friends with Bryant in recent years because their daughters Alyssa and Gianna went to school and played basketball together.
He said: “John and Kobe had a nice relationship, their two girls went to school and played basketball together and that’s how they met.
“I think both the girls were having a wonderful time, the time of their lives, and Kobe was just a delightful guy.
“John went to Kobe’s house and Kobe had been to John’s house. They were good friends at the end.
“John said Kobe was very low-key, very easygoing, a true gentleman who loved his family.
“One day when John’s baseball team were getting ready for a big tournament, he was going to give them a pep talk.
“He said ‘Hold on a minute, I’ve got a surprise for you’ and Kobe Bryant came in and gave the pep talk. They couldn’t believe it.”
Dad-of-seven Jim said he would remember John as a “lovable” son.
He said: “I’ve never seen such an outpouring in my life.
“So many people knew him and loved him. Baseball players, scouts, even umpires.
“He had a sense of humour about him that a lot of people didn’t know about...
“He was all about working hard and playing hard and his ball players all learned that from him.
"As strict as he was, he was lovable.
“Everybody loved John. He was like a father to a lot of the ball players.”
Meanwhile friends of the family have set up a to pay for funeral costs and Lexi's living costs and education now she has no parents.
The page, which last night had raised over $70,000, reads: "As many of you have read by now, a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020 in Calabasas, CA has claimed the lives of nine people. John, Keri and Alyssa Altobelli were among the nine victims.
"Most devastating to our Red Sox family, John, Keri, and Alyssa were the father, stepmother and younger sister of one of our scouts, J.J. Altobelli.
"As J.J. and his sister Lexi cope with the immense sadness stemming from this accident, we want to rally to raise money for them. Ensuring that J.J. and Lexi don’t have to worry about financial insecurity moving forward is the least we can do."
It adds: "These funds will help J.J. and Lexi as they are faced with funeral costs, Lexi’s future education, as well as other general living costs."
Pilot Ara Zobayan, 50, basketball coach Christine Mauser, 38, Gianna’s teammate Payton Chester, 13, and Payton’s mom Sarah Chester, 45, were also killed in the crash.
Tributes have been pouring in for all the victims.
Kobe's mother was visibly distressed and too upset to comment on Sunday.
On Monday Kobe's brother-in-law Jerrod Washington, who is married to the basketball star's sister Sharia, told The Sun: "It's not a good time to talk right now.
"I'm with my wife and just want to make sure to take care of her right now."
A family friend who spoke outside Sharia's house in Las Vegas earlier told The Sun the Bryant family were "obviously heartbroken."
"There will not be any comments from the family right away," he said.
"At some point the family will be reaching out but right now we are all in shock.
"Right now they're just trying to be a family."
Girls basketball coach Christina's husband Matt wrote on social media: "My kids and I are devastated.
"We lost our beautiful wife and mom today in a helicopter crash.
"Please respect our privacy. Thank you for all the well wishes they mean so much."
Todd Schmidt, Payton's former principal wrote on Facebook: "While the world mourns the loss of a dynamic athlete and humanitarian, I mourn the loss of two people just as important.
"Their impact was just as meaningful, their loss will be just as keenly felt, and our hearts are just as broken."
While pals of pilot Ara described him as an "incredible man".
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The pilot was told he was before the aircraft slammed into the hill.
Audio between the pilot and air traffic control reveal that air traffic controllers were attempting to guide the helicopter, but lost contact moments before its fatal fall.
Questions remain about , including the LAPD's own fleet, due to the foggy conditions - but an investigation is underway.
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