At least five dead in quake in Indonesia's Yogyakarta

YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia, May 27 (Reuters) At least five people died and scores were injured when a strong earthquake shook Indonesia's ancient royal capital and popular tourist area of Yogyakarta early this morning, hospital staff said.

''We have at least five people dead, but it could be more,'' Wahab, a nurse at Muhammmadiyah hospital, told Reuters by telephone.

He said there were dozens more injured.

Earlier Hany, an official at the same hospital, told a radio station that 50 people had been admitted for treatment, adding: ''the victims are still coming''.

Jakarta's earthquake centre official Fauzi put the strength of the quake at 5.8 and said its epicentre was in the sea about 50 kilometres south of Yogyakarta and had a depth of 33 kilometres.

Yogyakarta is on Indonesia's main island of Java and near Mount Merapi, a volcano that has been on top alert for a major eruption this month, but a vulcanoligist in Yogyakarta said the quake was tectonic and not caused by the volcano.

REUTERS DH RN0702