Armoured vehicle carrying Cpl. Nick Bulger, 30, hit a roadside bomb

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KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - A Canadian soldier travelling through a hotbed of Taliban activity was killed yesterday when his armoured vehicle struck a roadside bomb seconds after it was narrowly missed by the senior commander of coalition forces in Kandahar province.

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The Canadian Press

Cpl. Nick Bulger

Cpl. Nick Bulger, a 30-year-old father of two and member of 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, based in Edmonton, was in the vehicle directly behind that of Canadian Brig.-Gen. Jonathan Vance when the blast occurred.

Five other soldiers were hurt in the incident; Vance escaped unscathed.

"Despite his tough exterior, Nick had a big heart, which he lent to everyone in his life and which I had the honour to experience," said Vance, who himself betrayed little outward sign of his own close call.

"Although this was his first overseas deployment, he always handled himself as a seasoned infantry soldier."

The injured soldiers were reported in good condition.

Vance said Bulger, a family-oriented man from Peterborough, Ont., was destined for leadership training after joining the Canadian Forces in 2000.

As a "passionate" soldier, Bulger attacked every challenge head-on, Vance said. He is survived by his wife Rebeka and two daughters, mother, brothers and sister.

"It appears we've lost one of our valiant soldiers," Gen. Walter Natynczyk, Canada's chief of defence staff, said from Calgary.

"Again we grieve for our fallen warrior. We stand with their family and I know I'll meet them here in the next few days but it's a terrible situation that we're dealing with."

Prime Minister Stephen Harper expressed "profound regret" in a statement as he extended his own condolences to Bulger's family and loved ones.

"Hard-won progress is being made in Afghanistan," Harper said. "Remarkable Canadians like Corporal Bulger will be remembered for their dedication and ultimate sacrifice for peace and freedom."

The general, who frequently travels the province with soldiers who act as his "close-protection" force, was in the western Zhari district, a known area of intense insurgent activity about 60 kilometres west of Kandahar city. He was visiting with American troops who are under Canadian command. Vance's vehicle passed over the bomb, but the light armoured vehicle in which Bulger was travelling set it off about 15 metres behind.

"IEDs are the tools of cowards," Vance said.

The device is believed to have avoided detection during recent security sweeps in the area because it had been in place for some time under what became hard-packed, sun-baked dirt. That may also explain why the bomb wasn't set off by Vance's vehicle. The general said he knew immediately what had happened, and his military training kicked in. A second Canadian vehicle responding to the explosion also struck a similar device. There was no immediate indication that anyone was hurt in the second blast.

In an interview on Wednesday, Bulger said he believed Afghanistan had a future.

"Especially when we're driving down the streets in the rural areas, to look down into the eyes of the children that are there, you get a different perspective," Bulger said. "All you see is the war and the destruction and stuff like that, but then when you see those kids running through the streets without a care in the world . . . being here makes a huge difference."

Bulger became the 121st Canadian soldier to die as part of the international mission to bring peace and stability to Afghanistan.