Since the fighting erupted, banking services in Tigray have been suspended by the government. Access to the internet has also been cut – though it is not clear who ordered the closure.
A separate source in Alamata told the BBC there was a worsening humanitarian crisis in the area, as the town swelled with people fleeing fighting.
“All the residents of the surrounding areas entered the town of Alamata by walking on foot for as long as an hour, hoping the town would be safe.
“Unfortunately, everything is blocked – no banking service, no money transfer, no power, no internet, no phone. Hence people are in crisis, simply suffering, everyone is desperate and frustrated.”
The British tourist in Lalibela said online banking was working in Lalibela but there was a shortage of physical cash.
He said the situation around the town had calmed down in the last two days and there were indications the airport, which was still being used by the military, might reopen on Thursday.
“The local people, they are still scared of what might happen. The military presence here in the town has remained and a larger military force has been seen leaving the town heading north,” he said.
When the airport was first closed, 53 tourists had been in the town, he explained.
But some had since been evacuated, including the 14 Israelis airlifted out on Monday while another five had left the day before via an NGO convoy, despite advice not to travel by road.
Of the remaining tourists in Lalibela, the largest group were Americans, with Israelis, Britons, South Korean, South Africans, an Ethiopian-New Zealander and a Mexican also stranded, he said.
Meanwhile, for those cut off in Tigray because of the telecoms shutdown, the Tigray Broadcasting Service (TBS), based in Addis Ababa, has started an initiative to help reconnect families.
The broadcaster has said it will collect video messages via its Telegram channel from people outside the region and air them via satellite TV.
While limited to greetings and updates, this will provide a rare lifeline for families separated by the blackout.
The clampdown on Tigray’s banking services is also affecting Tigrayans who are not physically in the region.
Customers have told the BBC that bank accounts opened in Tigray have been frozen or restricted.
“I boarded public transport from Addis Ababa to Adama and tried to pay using a mobile transfer, but it didn’t work,” said a former Mekelle resident who moved to the capital two months ago because of growing tensions in Tigray.
“It has created havoc for many people like me who escaped the situation in Tigray,” he told the BBC’s Tigrinya service.
“Many Tigrayans are now in trouble.”
Additional reporting by Yemane Nagish
