It has been reported today that thirty-nine dead bodies have been found in a lorry in Essex, U.K.
Police were called by the ambulance service after the discovery of the lorry container at Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays at 1.40 am British time.
All of the thirty-nine people found were pronounced dead.
According to reports, a twenty-five-year-old man from Northern Ireland who was driving the lorry has been arrested on suspicion of murder.
It is believed that the lorry had originally traveled from Bulgaria, and it entered the U.K at Holyhead in North Wales on Saturday last week.
Essex Police Chief Superintendent Andrew Mariner said to Sky News: “This is a tragic incident where a large number of people have lost their lives. Our inquiries are ongoing to establish what has happened.
“We are in the process of identifying the victims, however, I anticipate that this could be a lengthy process,” he went on to say.
“We believe the lorry is from Bulgaria and entered the country at Holyhead on Saturday 19 October and we are working closely with our partners to investigate. We have arrested the lorry driver in connection with the incident who remains in police custody as our inquiries continue.”
Police have been appealing to the British public for anyone with information to get in touch with them, and have put a cordon in place and access to and from the industrial park is closed.
Mr. Mariner added: “I appreciate this cordon is going to disrupt the activity of local businesses in the area and we will work to ensure that disruption is kept as short as possible. We are working with Thurrock Council to mitigate against any impact our investigation scene will have locally.”
Of course, this news has been devastating for the local community. Deputy Chief Constable Pippa Mills told reporters outside Grays police station that the incident was an “absolute tragedy and a very sad day for Essex Police and the community”.
National Crime Agency officers have been deployed to assist Essex Police with the investigation, and three Red Cross emergency support vehicles were also seen heading into the site.
Mills added that it would be a “lengthy process” to identify the bodies, and apologized for the disruption the investigation would cause businesses at the industrial park.
This is an ongoing investigation, so stay tuned for updates.
