The Canadian death toll in Afghanistan now stands at 41. A Canadian gunner became the 40th Canadian soldier killed today in the war-torn country when his armoured vehicle was hit by a roadside explosion 25 kilometres west of Kandahar. The Defence Department says his family has asked that his name not be released. Military officials say the much-vaunted Nyala RG-31 armoured truck was hit while on a pre-dawn patrol in the Panjwaii district about 5 a-m Afghanistan time. The force of the blast penetrated the vehicle, which has been praised in the past for its ability to resist anti-tank mines. Colonel Fred Lewis, deputy commander of Canadian troops in southern Afghanistan, notes ``You can always build a bigger bomb.'' He says in this particular case, ``the enemy got a bit lucky.'' No other soldiers were injured. Video from the scene showed the Nyala being towed away with a wheel missing. Otherwise, the vehicle appeared to be largely intact. The Defence Department says the site of today's explosion was within one kilometre of the two most recent incidents which took the lives of three Canadian soldiers. The Panjwaii area has been the scene of heavy fighting and several bomb attacks in the last month. Thirteen soldiers have died in the area since September 1st. Today's attack came on the fifth anniversary of the U-S-led invasion to oust the Taliban. Since Canadian soldiers were deployed to Afghanistan in 2002, 40 soldiers and one diplomat have died. Thirty-two of the soldiers have died since March. The Defence Department says in a statement today it won't be deterred from the goal of helping the Afghan people achieve greater stability and security.