Eight migrants from Afghanistan were discovered in a refrigerator truck heading to the UK during an inspection in a French port, the Parisien reported Sunday, citing the Boulogne-sur-Mer’s prosecutor’s office.
The migrants were found in a state of mild hypothermia and transported to a hospital in Calais.
The migrants were reportedly hidden in a double bottom of the refrigerator compartment with the door locked from the outside. It was about 7 degrees Celsius inside, authorities said. The truck drew suspicions from the customs officers because it did not contain merchandise.
Earlier this week, 39 corpses were found in a locked refrigerator truck in UK’s Essex. A coroner will perform an examination of all the victims to determine the cause of death, according to The New York Times, but suffocation in the airtight compartment and/or severe hypothermia because of automatic refrigerator equipment are believed to be the most probable reasons.