Up To 50 Refugees Found 'Suffocated' In Lorry

The bodies of up to 50 refugees have been found in the back of a lorry in Austria, it has been reported.

The refrigerated vehicle was discovered on the hard shoulder of the A4 highway, close to Parndorf, according to Krone newspaper.

The spot is about 50 km (28 miles) southeast of the capital Vienna and about 25km (16 miles) from the Hungarian and Slovak borders.

It is thought the people were trapped in the trailer and suffocated after being unable to get out but police said it was too early to confirm the cause of death.

The van had been seen stationary by staff at a nearby service station and when it failed to move for some time, they called the police.

One witness said that liquid was seen leaking out of the back of the chilled foods lorry.

When the police arrived they found the back door slightly ajar and inside were the partially decomposed remains of the migrants.

The driver is believed to have fled the scene and is currently being sought by police.

At a press conference in Eisenstadt, Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner said it demonstrated "the despicable methods used by Mafia traffickers in all their ugliness in Austria".

"Today is a dark day," she said vowing there would be zero tolerance shown towards any that were caught.

Ms Mikl-Leitner said: "These people belong behind bars! These Mafia traffickers must know that they cannot feel safe in Austria."

The interior ministry confirmed there had been between 20 and 50 deaths.

Police said the truck had Hungarian licence plates and the logo of a Slovakian meat product company on the side.

Austrian police believed the lorry was in Hungary until yesterday.

The company told Krone it had sold 13 vehicles in 2014.

A spokesman said he understood that the buyer had then resold at least one of them on in Hungary.

Earlier, three other vehicles were seized in Bruck an der Leitha, a short distance further northwest, one of which contained 34 refugees.

That group had been saved but had complained about being almost unable to breathe once inside the back, Krone said.

It was alleged that the driver had ignored multiple requests to stop on their journey from the Serbian border to Austria.

It came as thousands of migrants and refugees a day are travelling between Greece to Hungary as they seek a better life in the European Union.

They are taking the perilous "Balkan Corridor", with many of the countries on the way feeling the strain of so many people passing through.

Hungary has told Sky News that "swift action" must be taken in order to tackle the crisis .

While many have said they are heading to Germany, and some to the UK, a large number claim they are on their way to Sweden where the country's tolerant approach to immigration is being put under strain.