A nine-year-old boy suffocated to death when he was buried under tonnes of grain as he played on a farm.

The horrific accident happened as the lad was playing with the farmer’s son in Lamprechtshausen, Austria, on Monday, 18th July.

The two boys had been using a grain-filled tipper truck as a makeshift slide while it was raised to empty the load of wheat.

But as the victim – named only as Thomas in local media – slid down, he became stuck in a pipe feeding a storage area.

Within seconds, he had become engulfed by tonnes of grain and could not get out.

His friend immediately sought his dad’s help and the farmer dug the lad out, but by then he was unconscious.

The boy was airlifted to University Hospital Salzburg but died soon after.

Lamprechtshausen mayor Andrea Pabinger said: “You can’t believe it.

“Words fail you, especially when you have grandchildren or children yourself.”

Police are investigating.