Hampshire nightclub owners pay tribute to man killed in Paris terror

Bosses at Southampton venue the Engine Rooms met victim Nick Alexander when he visited the club for a sell-out gig by the Eagles of Death Metal.

The 36-year-old merchandise seller from London was also in the French capital when terrorists launched the rampage – killing at least 129 people and injuring 352.

He was selling merchandise during the band’s gig at the Bataclan concert hall where gunmen attacked and killed more than 80 people.

The band – who had played at the Engine Rooms 10 days earlier – were unharmed and the drummer was forced to duck behind his drum kit after the guitarists fled.

Engine Rooms owner Ronnie Scarrott posted on the club’s official Facebook site: “"Myself and all the team at Engine Rooms are saddened to hear that Eagles Of Death Metals merch seller Nick Alexander died last night in Paris.

“We had the pleasure of meeting him 10 days ago when we hosted the band in Southampton, he was a lovely chap! love and thoughts go out to his family, all that knew him and all that lost their lives in Paris last night.

“Ronnie & all the team at Engine Rooms x"

In a statement Mr Alexander’s family said he was ''everyone's best friend'' and died ''doing the job he loved''.

Helen Wilson told the Telegraph she and Mr Alexander, who had previously been in a relationship, lay down on the floor when up to six people with machine guns and shotguns began to shoot.

The American, who moved to Paris where she runs a catering company, said someone moved and the attackers turned to them and fired shots.

Miss Wilson, who was shot in the leg during the attack, said she tried to give Mr Alexander mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

She said: "Then he couldn't breathe any more and I held him in my arms and told him I loved him. He was the love of my life."

Islamic State (IS) has claimed responsibility for the killings which are the worst peacetime attacks on French soil since World War II.

Officials fear that a ''handful'' of people from the UK have lost their lives.

One of the attackers was identified as 29-year-old Frenchman Ismael Mostefai, who had been flagged for links to Islamic radicalism.

Prosecutors believe three teams of terrorists carried out co-ordinated attacks.

Most of those who lost their lives were at the packed Bataclan nightclub where the Eagles of Death Metal were playing only days after they played at the Engine Rooms in Southampton.

Another attack was at the Stade de France where the French national football team was playing Germany.

Explosions were audible during the game before the full scale of the horror became apparent.

Suicide bombers who targeted the stadium were found to have Egyptian and Syrian passports and one was reported to have had a ticket for the game, detonating his bomb after being stopped by security staff trying to enter the stadium.

At least one of the attackers is believed to have passed through Greece as a refugee.

Three arrests linked to the attacks have been made by the authorities in Belgium, after a car with Belgian number plates was seen close to the Bataclan.

A former London School of Economics student was named by the university as a victim. Valentin Ribet, a business law graduate, was confirmed as one of the 80 people feared dead after gunmen opened fire into the crowd at the concert hall in Paris.

Home Secretary Theresa May said today that the UK stands "shoulder to shoulder" with France, as investigations continued into the terrorists responsible for the rampage in Paris.

Security in the UK has been beefed up, with an increased presence by police and border staff following the attack.

Four British women from Southampton on a weekend break to Paris have vowed to return to "see the real city" after Friday's terrorist attacks brought part of the French capital to a halt.

The quartet, who gave their names as Sam, Anna, Emily and Hollie from Southampton, said they would not let the Islamic State (IS) attackers ruin the city's name.

They visited some of the crime scenes and left flowers a few yards from where bullet holes punctured panes of glass in restaurants in the east of the city.

Hollie, 20, said: "It was important for us to come to this part of Paris and pay our respects.

"We were here to sight-see and that hasn't really happened, for obvious reasons. We just wanted to show solidarity with French people."

The group arrived in the city just a couple of hours before the massacre began and had planned to visit the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower - closed since the attacks took place.

A tearful Anna, also 20, said: "This is not the Paris we know around the world. The terrorists who did this will not win.

"This is an amazing city and a terrorist attack will not change that."

The group had been planning to head home on Monday but have since moved that forward to today.

Sam, 21, added: "We have all obviously been getting a lot of calls and texts from home. People are worried, obviously.

"But some people are saying this is probably the safest place we can be right now.

"It seems like the right thing to do to go home. It's not right to go sightseeing here and having fun in these circumstances. Everyone's mood is low."

Emily, 20, making her second visit to Paris, said: "I came here last year and had a brilliant time, so this is very different.

"We don't feel unsafe at all. This hasn't ruined Paris for us. We will be back. This is a beautiful city."