It appears that a show of anger from Premier Ranj Pillai has caught the attention of Bell Canada, which owns Northwestel Inc.

Last Thursday, Pillai sent a letter to the giant, Montreal-based corporation criticizing the state of cellphone coverage in the territory. Yukoners are “pissed,” Pillai said in a statement, in a rare display of using harsh language.

In response, Bell Canada president Mirko Bibic says the company takes complaints from Yukon residents about poor cellphone service in the territory “extremely seriously.”

He says in a letter of response that Bell investigated once it was told about the problems customers were having, and found that there were “congestion issues,” partly due to greater usage on the network.

Bibic’s letter says upgrade work also may have caused some people to experience “intermittent disruptions.”

It says the company will “monitor the situation” to avoid similar issues in the future, and adds that Bell is investing $22 million over three years to expand its network in the Yukon. There were no more specifics as to how Bell Canada will improve the situation.

Pillai’s letter to Bibic outlined several issues angering Yukon residents. Those include dropped calls, delayed text messages and “patchy Internet connections,” and how reliable cell phone service is needed in emergencies because it “can be a matter of life and death. 

“Bell needs to live up to their obligations mandated by the (Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission) and do better,” Pillai’s letter said.