JAKARTA, July 17 (UPI) -- An earthquake measuring up to 7.7 on the Richter scale shook the Indonesian island of Java Monday, spawning a tsunami that killed scores of people.
The quake's epicenter was far below the surface of the ocean and more than 120 miles off the south coast of Java, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported.
ABC put the death toll at 104, a figure that seemed likely to increase.
Fitri Sudikah of the Indonesian Red Cross told The New York Times in a telephone interview most of the dead were swept out to sea and then carried back in again. Scores more were missing.
The area hit hardest by the tsunami was Pangandaran, a coastal resort and fishing village. Beach cottages were demolished by the wave.
Buildings in Jakarta, some 200 miles away, swayed but there were no immediate reports of damage. At least two aftershocks were reported, local media said.
The tsunami was far smaller than the one that killed more than 200,000 people in the Indonesian province of Aceh and elsewhere around the Indian Ocean. In May, central Java was struck by a 6.3 magnitude quake that killed nearly 6,000.
