A NEW Forest man has described how the ground "turned to jelly" during the Nepal earthquake in April this year.

Jasdip ‘Jazz’ Gill, from Friar's Cliff, left the UK and his career with JP Morgan to explore the world in 2012.

The 33-year-old was trekking the Annapurna mountain circuit in Nepal when the Gorkha earthquake struck on April 25 - a disaster which would claim nearly 9,000 lives and leave many thousands of people homeless.

"I was in a small village on the route when a cow nearby started to stamp its feet and make strange noises," he said.

"We thought nothing of it, then a few seconds later the ground started to shake and there was a loud rumbling noise.

"As we looked up we saw a huge avalanche across the valley on Annapurna 2, an 8,000 metre high mountain."

The village was less than 100km from the epicentre, but the mountains shielded it from serious harm.

Mr Gill said village residents hurried to a long set of prayer wheels and spent the rest of the day chanting and praying.

He was delivering aid to another isolated village in the Rasuwa district when a second quake hit, and he vividly remembers how "the earth started to shake like a stampede, then the ground turned to jelly".

"This was followed by cracking and booming like thunder as mountainsides crumbled near us causing large landslides.

"Everyone was gazing up the hills to look for tumbling boulders and free falling rocks.

"Ironically, the houses in the region had already been levelled by the first earthquake, so there was little further damage that could've been caused."

Mr Gill, whose parents live in Friar's Cliff - his father a magistrate and the manager of the New Milton post office - decided to remain in the country as long as his visa would allow, helping the relief effort.

"I travel a lot and gain so much from the amazing places I visit, and to leave a country on its knees didn't seem right," he said.

He travelled to Pokhara, the country's third largest city, and within a few days had organised an aid truck to deliver food and shelter supplies back to Rasuwa.

Then, he joined Karma Flights, a local aid organisation which was able to begin delivering aid and building schools and shelters in the Saurpani area of the Gorkha district before the international NGOs had mobilised.

In the face of the intense heat and violent storms of the approaching monsoon season, Mr Gill and his colleagues endured long and bumpy Jeep journeys into the most remote regions of Nepal, laden with tents and food supplies.

Aside from the mountainous terrain, he said corruption and Nepal's caste system had proven to be obstacles.

Before leaving Nepal a few days ago, he contacted friends and family back home in the UK and was able to raise £2,400 for the on-going relief work.

Mr Gill grew up in Southampton and the New Forest, and worked with JP Morgan in Bournemouth and London in the commodities department.

He studied at Brockenhurst College and Birmingham University.

He said: "The most important thing people at home can do right now is donate money, there are many groups doing amazing work and they will continue to do so long after the earthquake drops out off the news."

With much of the Nepalese economy dependent on tourism, the disaster has left many families struggling to survive even in areas not directly affected by the earthquake.

Mr Gill described taking a holiday there as "one of the greatest gifts people at home can give".

"The people of Nepal are some of the kindest and most humble I've met, I was taken aback by the number of locals organising relief and support for their country.

"Most people here have very little, but they were still willing to give.

"As a country Nepal is beautiful and diverse. There are national parks where you can spot rhinos, elephants and tigers, as well as countless trekking routes in the hills and mountains.

"I urge people to visit because they really won't be disappointed."

To learn more about Karma Flights or to donate visit www.karmaflights.org or look them up on Facebook.