With two members of its news team recovering from injuries suffered in a roadside blast in Afghanistan on Wednesday, Radio-Canada is nevertheless sending a fresh crew to cover the conflict.

Camera operator-editor Charles Dubois suffered a severely damaged leg and Ottawa bureau chief Patrice Roy was experiencing nervous shock following the explosion — credited to insurgent violence west of Kandahar — which heavily damaged the pair’s armored vehicle. They were travelling with Quebec’s Royal 22nd ‘Vandoo’ Regiment. Canadian soldiers Master Cpl. Christian Duchesne and Master Warrant Officer Mario Mercier, as well as an Afghan interpreter, were killed in the incident.

The SRC reporters were to be flown to Germany on Friday, where Dubois will be treated at the Landstuhl military hospital, a Radio-Canada spokesperson tells Playback Daily. Roy, who was initially assigned to Afghanistan until Sept. 9, is now expected to be returning home shortly. The incident marks the first time Radio-Canada journalists have been injured covering the conflict, according to the spokesperson.

Journalist Jean-François Bélanger, no stranger to war zones, will be leaving in a few days to replace Roy for one month.

Meanwhile, as planned, Bernard Derome, veteran anchor of SRC’s Le téléjournal, was to leave Thursday night for the region, along with cameraman Gilbert Drouin and producer Bruno Bonamigo. The team will spend 10 days in Afghanistan filing reports for TV, radio, and specialty RDI.

The pubcaster says it won’t be dissuaded from covering Canada’s mission.

‘All Radio-Canada staff have been shaken by what happened to Charles and Patrice,’ said SRC EVP Sylvain Lafrance, in a release. ‘These two individuals deserve our admiration and full support. As public broadcaster, however, Radio-Canada has the mandate and moral duty to directly report on a conflict involving our fellow citizens at this stage of the mission.’