TRIBUTES have been paid to a student found dead at his Southampton halls of residence.

Alexander Ukwu was discovered in his room with canisters of helium gas beside his body.

The 19-year-old was a first year student at the University of Southampton.

Fellow students living near the halls in Hartley Grove have told of their shock and said they were heartbroken for his family.

Flowers now line the block where Alexander was found, with one message saying ‘Gone too soon, RIP Alex. Forever in our thoughts and hearts’.

Daily Echo:

His death comes just three months after another University of Southampton student jumped to his death from the roof of his halls in the city centre.

The two tragedies have led to calls for more to be done to support young people studying at the university.

It is not clear who first alerted emergency services to Alexander’s death but police said they were called to the scene by an ambulance crew which needed a specialist team to check the risk of helium to other students living in the halls.

Daily Echo:

They cordoned off the building for at least four hours as they investigated the cause of death.

A spokeswoman for South Central Ambulance Service said that an ambulance, a rapid response team and a hazardous area response team were dispatched to the property.

She said: “We were called at 11.26am on Thursday, April 23, to student accommodation in Southampton where a 19-year-old male was found deceased.”

Daily Echo:

A spokesman for Hampshire police said: “We were alerted to the sudden death at an address in Hartley Grove by South Central Ambulance Service. Specialist officers were used to ensure the amount of helium did not pose a risk.”

Officers have said that the death is not being treated as suspicious and they are preparing a file for the coroner.

In a statement to Alexander’s fellow students, Neil White, head of the electronics and computer science department, said: “I am writing to you with great sadness, to notify you of the death yesterday of Alexander Ukwu.

“Alexander will be sadly missed and we are in contact with his family to send our condolences and sympathy to them at this difficult time.

“I understand that you may be very upset by this news. There are a number of different ways you can access support, if you feel you would like to.”Jack Lane, 19, a second year student from Portswood, said: “It’s really sad. I hope his family are OK.

"It seems like this is happening a lot at the moment where students are dying. I don’t know the reasons behind this particular death but I think there should be a bigger support group because it gets very stressful here and being away from home is hard and studying is very intense.”

An 18-year-old student living nearby, who did not want to be named, said: “I just feel awful for his family.

"For it to happen away from his home, it’s so shocking and really upsetting. I was out when the police arrived but came back to see it had been taped off. It’s really sad.”