Everything we know about the 39 victims found dead in shipping container

Families who fear their relatives are among the 39 found dead in a shipping container have submitted DNA samples to the authorities.

Essex Police initially believed the victims to be Chinese nationals, but it has since been discovered as many as 25 of them could be Vietnamese.

Several families have come forward say they believe their loved-ones were travelling to the UK inside the lorry.

Most of them last spoke to the person on Monday or Tuesday this week, just hours before the container was found in a Grays industrial park, in Essex.

Here is what we know about the suspected victims so far.

Pham Thi Tra My

Tra My, 26, has not been heard from since she sent text messages on Tuesday stating that she was struggling to breathe.

Her parents, Pham Van Thin and Nguyen Thi Phong, live in a small house in Nghen, in Ha Tinh, and earn roughly £305 a month.

They say say they managed to scrape together £30,000 to pay for Tra My’s travel – but were told by traffickers the route would be safe.

Van Thin described his daughter as having a ‘big heart’, telling Sky News that she ‘took the risk’ of going to the UK because of the family’s ‘difficult situation’ involving debt.

He added: ‘I’ve lost both my loved one and my money.’

In Tra My’s last communication with her family, she apologised to her parents and told them she thought she was going to die.

She texted: ‘So sorry mum and dad. The route to abroad didn’t succeed. Mum. I love you and dad so much. I am dying because I can’t breathe.’

Anna Bui Thi Nhung

At just 19, Anna is possibly the youngest person suspected to have died inside the trailer in Essex.

She is believed to have paid people traffickers nearly £8,000 and reportedly wanted to work as a nail technician in the UK.

The teenager, from the village of Yen Thanh, had planned to send money home to help her mum pay off her debts after her father died two years ago.

Her cousin, Tran Dinh Luc, 30, told the Mail Online she was a ‘happy kind girl’ who the family all missed ‘terribly’.

He continued: ‘[We are] holding out for a miracle that she did not get in the lorry. We want to have her back home. The family will not be able to grieve properly until she is home.’

Anna had posted photos of herself in Brussels in the days before the lorry left, but told a Facebook friend on Monday that the journey was ‘not good’.

Le Van Ha

Father Le Minh Tuan, has not heard from his son Ha, 30, in over a week, with their last communication done over Facebook.

Ha wrote online: ‘I’m about to board a car to Britain. I will contact the family when I arrive in England, Dad.’

His family now believe he was ‘for sure’ in the Essex shipping container, with Tuan tearfully telling AFP: ‘I just want my son’s [body] back home’.

Ha left behind his wife and two sons in Vietnam, and previously travelled to Turkey, before Greece and France.

He hoped to earn enough money to pay back smugglers and build the family home.

Nguyen Dinh Tu

Tu, 26, was supposed to be picked up by relatives after he arrived in the UK but has not been located.

Originally from the Do Thanh, in the Nghe An province, he was once part of the military, before picking up illegal work in Germany and Romania.

He asked his wife Hoang Thi Thuong to help him raise £11,000 so that he could get to the UK, but she has not heard from him since.

She told Reuters: ‘I have a big debt to pay, no hope, and no energy to do anything.’

Tu’s father also stated that his last contact with his son was on Tuesday, the day before the bodies were found.

Nguyen Dinh Luong

Luong, 20, had been working in France before deciding to move to the UK for ‘more stable employment’, his brother Nguyen Dinh Oanh said.

His family, from Can Loc, Ha Tinh, last heard about his whereabouts on Tuesday, when they were told they would need to transfer money soon.

They have not been contacted about payment since.

His brother Nguyen Dinh Oanh told the ABC: ‘I do not know if my brother was in the truck or not, but we are very worried and concerned.

‘Before he left for the UK he texted us to say he was about to go.’

Vo Ngoc Nam

Dad-of-two Nam, 28, told his wife he had boarded a lorry in France on Tuesday, having previously travelled to Romania, Germany and France to find work.

He asked her to call her parents and tell them to pray for him, but has not been heard from since.

Nam’s family are said to be ‘very anxious’ for information, and were ‘extremely shocked’ to hear people had been found dead.

His family situation has been described as ‘difficult’ by local media.

Bui Phan Thang

Thang left behind a wife and three children in Vietnam before attempting to travel to the UK this week.

He told his family on Monday he was about to get into a vehicle, but no one has had contact with him since.

His siblings are already living in Britain, but have been unable to locate his whereabouts.

Vo Nhan Du

Vo Nhan Du, 19, is believed to have left Belgium for the UK on Tuesday and has not been in touch with his family since.

Originally from the rural district of Can Loc, his picture is now being shared in several Vietnamese Facebook groups.