Gardai say two of the eight refugees found dead in a container in Wexford were children.
Four men and a woman are being treated in hospital and one is said to be in a serious condition. All five are described as semi-comatose.
The human cargo was discovered in Drinagh Business Park, about two miles outside Wexford, after a lorry driver transporting the container heard noises coming from inside it. Gardai have yet to establish the identities of the refugees, but they are believed to be Romanian.
The container is believed to have originated in Italy and arrived in the port of Waterford earlier today before being transported to the Drinagh Business Park. The lorry driver who discovered the bodies has been treated for shock.