Thousands of people have fallen ill in China with symptoms of a mosquito-borne virus.

More than 7,000 cases have been reported to the authorities of the chikungunya virus, which can cause fever and joint pain.

Patients are being kept in hospital for a minimum of one week.

The outbreak has been mostly across the city of Foshan, in the southern province of Guangdong, with the authorities tackling the rise in cases with methods last widely seen in China during COVID .

Workers have been seen spraying clouds of disinfectant around streets, residential areas and office buildings where people may come into contact with the mosquitoes which are born in standing water.

Drones are also being deployed to search for insect breeding grounds.

People have been urged to use mosquito nets for bed

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