This archive report was first published on 28 November 2019.
On November 27, 2019, the first of the remains arrived in Vietnam, marking the beginning of a difficult journey for families who had been waiting for the return of their loved ones.
Among the 39 people found dead in the truck on October 23, 16 bodies arrived in Vietnam on Wednesday, flown on a commercial flight from London in canvas-covered coffins.
Vo Van Binh, whose 25-year-old son Vo Van Linh was among the victims, said, "I'm very sad to have to bury my own son."
Families like Binh's took out loans from the government to cover the cost of repatriation, with $1,800 for ashes and $2,900 for the body.
"I wanted to bring him back in full so I could see his face one last time," Binh told AFP from his bare home in Ha Tinh province, surrounded by dozens of mourning family members.
As the families laid their loved ones to rest, the community was left reeling from the tragedy, with at least five young people from Can Loc district in Ha Tinh province among the victims.
"This is the first time we experienced a tragedy like this -- five young people dead at the same time, and five funerals at the same time," said one of Linh's neighbours, who wished to remain anonymous.
