Canadian Armed Forces personnel in Nepal are "safe and accounted for" following a 7.3-magnitude earthquake that shook the already devastated mountainous nation on Tuesday.

Lt.-Cmdr Kelly Williamson says her Disaster Assistance Response Team is helping the Nepalese Army with medical triage following the latest disaster, which comes just three weeks after a 7.8-magnitude quake that destroyed villages, ruined parts of Kathmandu and left thousands dead.

"All Canadian Armed Forced personnel are safe and accounted for and our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Nepal," Williamson told CTV's Daniele Hamamdjian in a statement. "We continue to work with our partners to gather information and re-assess the situation on the ground."

Williamson told CTV News Channel she was at the DART headquarters in Nepal when the quake struck on Tuesday. "Initially we thought it was just going to be a small aftershock like some of the others we experienced, but as it went on we soon realized it was quite a bit more serious," she said.

Williamson says the ground shook and the lights started swaying inside the DART building where she was. She and her squadmates immediate went outside to wait for the quake to stop. Williamson says she saw an antenna on top of a nearby building "swaying back and forth like it was made out of rubber."

The whole incident lasted between 30 and 45 seconds, she said.

Once the quake stopped, Williamson and her team established contact with the rest of their DART personnel to make sure they were safe.

A video from a Global Medic worker at the DART base shows the effects of the quake as it hit the countryside. The video shows large clouds of smoke rising up from the hills as buildings collapsed and landslides slid down the slopes.

 

Our team was in a meeting at the Canadian Forces DART base in Nepal when a 7.3 earthquake hit 66 km from us. We witnessed mountain top villages crumble and landslides from the valley bottom. Here is the video:

Posted by GlobalMedic on Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Canada's DART crews have been in Nepal since late April as part of a multi-national effort to help survivors of the first quake, which hit on Apr. 25. Williamson says DART has been focused on removing rubble and clearing travel routes.

"We hope to be back to our operations as quickly as possible," she said.

Many international humanitarian organizations are also on the ground, treating the wounded, caring for the homeless and burying the dead. Several Canadian civilians are among those helping out.

Canadian pediatrician Pargat Singh Bhurji says conditions are "very grave" in Kathmandu, where he and another doctor from Vancouver are providing maternal and child healthcare. He told CTV News Channel many have been severely injured in the catastrophe. "Mostly crush wounds, lacerations, fractures, broken bones and bleeding," Bhurji said.

He said this second earthquake will only multiply the need for aid in Nepal. "The task is going to be monumental," he said. "People are afraid to go back to their homes because after the first earthquake, it took them a while to trust going back."

Tuesday's 7.3-magnitude quake struck northeast of Kathmandu, near Nepal's border with China. Dozens are dead and more than 1,000 have been reported injured. The quake triggered panic in Kathmandu as many feared a repeat of the last quake.

The April quake toppled buildings in the capital of Kathmandu and killed more than 8,000 people. The earthquake also triggered an avalanche that killed several climbers at Mount Everest.

Most Nepalese have been living outside ever since out of fear that more tremors will hit and bury them inside their structurally unstable homes.

Kathmandu Airport briefly shut down following the quake, but has since re-opened.

With files from CTV correspondent Daniele Hamamdjian