Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has ordered a probe into trafficking of Vietnamese citizens amid fear that Vietnamese are among victims of the 39 people found dead in a refrigerated container of the semi-trailer truck at an industrial park in Essex, the UK. 

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. Photo: VGP

 The Government chief tasked the Ministry of Public Security to coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and local authorities of Nghe An, Ha Tinh and relevant localities to promptly probe the tragedy in the UK.

He also asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to direct the Vietnamese Embassy in London to closely monitor and coordinate with the British side to verify whether Vietnamese nationals are among the victims.

Concerned agencies must report to the Prime Minister before November 5.

Earlier, the Vietnamese Embassy in London had announced its hotline +44 7713 181501 to help Vietnamese nationals seeking assistance in relation to the Essex case.

Those seeking assistance can also contact Viet Nam’s general citizen protection hotline +84981 8484 84.

The Embassy said it has also worked with British police to identify the nationality of the victims.

Over the past few days, a family in the north-central Vietnamese province of Ha Tinh reported to authorities that their daughter might be one of the 39 victims.

The 26-year-old woman had left Viet Nam on October 3 and is believed to have traveled through China and France before reaching the UK.

She has not been heard from since Wednesday, when she bade farewell to her family in chat messages provided by a source close to the family./.