A Southampton-based British Army sergeant has visited his hometown while on an overseas exercise.

Sergeant Emmanuel ‘Ice’ Usiagwu, of the Royal Logistic Corps, returned to Lagos, Nigeria, aboard the UK Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel, RFA Lyme Bay.

Ice, who lives in Southampton with his wife and three children, said: "It was a great opportunity to see family and loved ones, including two brothers and two sisters, after having not seen them for a number of years.

"It was a surreal situation to find myself in British military uniform aboard a British Auxiliary vessel back in my hometown some 16 years after joining the British Army."

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Sergeant Emmanuel ‘Ice’ Usiagwu, 17 Port and Maritime Regiment RLC on right (Image: Crown Copyright 2025) Born in Lagos, Ice joined the army in 2008 after a visit to the UK in 2007 inspired him to apply through the Commonwealth soldier scheme.

Since completing training, he has been deployed to the Falklands twice, was part of Op Olympic 2012, carried out an operational tour aboard RFA Mounts Bay in the Caribbean in 2019 and joined RFA Lyme Bay in October 2024.

Onboard RFA Lyme Bay, as the senior NCO, Ice oversees a team of six RLC ranks whose role is to ensure all vehicles and equipment are secured correctly.