Thousands mourned the Ethiopian plane crash victims on Sunday, accompanying seventeen empty caskets draped in the national flag through the streets of the capital as some victims’ relatives fainted and fell to the ground.

The service came one day after officials began delivering bags of earth to family members of the 157 victims of the crash instead of the remains of their loved ones because the identification process is expected to take such a long time.

Priests attend the burial ceremony of the Ethiopian Airlines crash victims at the Holy Trinity Cathedral Orthodox church in Addis-Ababa.

Priests attend the burial ceremony of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 302 crash victims at the Holy Trinity Cathedral Orthodox Church in Addis-Ababa, March 17th.

Family members confirmed they were given a one kilogram sack of scorched earth taken from the crash site. Many relatives already have gathered at the rural, dusty crash site outside Ethiopia’s capital.