JAKARTA, July 17: A two-meter-high tsunami crashed into beach resorts and fishing villages on Indonesia’s Java island on Monday, killing at least 105 people, leaving scores more missing and sending thousands fleeing to higher ground, witnesses, officials, and media reports said.

Regional agencies issued bulletins saying a 7.7 magnitude earthquake that had struck beneath the Indian Ocean was strong enough to send a killer wave hurtling towards Indonesia, the country worst hit by the 2004 tsunami.

But the alerts did not reach the victims because the densely populated island — where a powerful quake killed thousands just seven weeks ago — does not have a tsunami warning system.

The hardest-hit area on Monday appeared to be Pangandaran, an idyllic beach resort long popular with local and foreign tourists, where witnesses said people shouted “tsunami, tsunami,” and climbed trees or crowded inland mosques as the wave approached.—Agencies