BANGKOK — Over a week after a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar, claiming the lives of around 3,500 people and trapping many beneath collapsed buildings, countless families are still in the dark about the fate of their loved ones. A major reason for this uncertainty is the lack of internet access, which residents and aid workers say is seriously hampering rescue and relief efforts across the country.

Gus, a 30-year-old LGBTQ+ activist from the Sagaing region in the northwest, still doesn’t know what happened to two of his friends who were in Mandalay—ground zero of the earthquake—when it hit on March 28. “It’s so hard to reach our friends, our families, and our comrades to check if they’re safe,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “I’m deeply worried about them.”

Since the military junta seized control in a 2021 coup, communications have remained under tight military control, aimed at crushing opposition from ethnic rebel groups and the civil disobedience movement. The regime has reportedly killed nearly 6,500 people and detained close to 30,000, including children, since the coup began. Gus, now living in hiding due to his activism and LGBTQ+ identity, is among many affected by the regime’s digital crackdown. Nearly one-third of the population has no internet access at all, while the rest face strict censorship, with social media and news sites heavily restricted.

Disclaimer: This image is taken from Reuters