Combat engineers have begun the meticulous process of clearing a road of possible mines near Kabul, Afghanistan where two Canadian soldiers were killed in a blast early last month.

Sgt. Robert Short and Cpl. Robbie Beerenfenger died Oct. 2 when their unarmoured Iltis jeep struck a suspected anti-tank mine on the road.

The engineers were using remote-controlled vehicles, sticks and even their bare hands Sunday as they worked to clear the road.

"We need to be able to move through that ground," said Maj.-Gen. Andrew Leslie, the top Canadian soldier in Afghanistan and deputy commander of the International Security Assistance Force.

He said everyone felt emotional about what happened to Sgt. Short and Clp. Beerenfenger, but the barren stretch of dirt road is strategically important.

"There's a time for icy cold logic ... and the battalion has to be able to patrol down there," Leslie said.

The road, which winds through a mountainous area less than four kilometres southwest of the Canadian Forces' Camp Julien, is a link to Afghanistan's volatile southern provinces.

It's also an inviting area for potential terrorist attacks.

"That is the prime area from which to launch small rockets either against Camp Julien or against the southwest corner of Kabul," Leslie said.

After the Oct. 2 blast, the road was closed until military engineers could conduct a full clearance operation.

A report from a board of inquiry investigating the explosion has been submitted to the Defence department, but has yet to be made public.