China brings chikungunya outbreak under control with zero-COVID-style tactics
But instead of a novel coronavirus, the authorities were pulling out all the stops to tackle a much more familiar malady, albeit one not usually associated with China: chikungunya.
First identified in Tanzania in the 1950s and endemic to much of tropical Africa and parts of Asia, the chikungunya virus, which causes fever and occasionally debilitating joint pain, is spread by two species of mosquitos, whose populations have boomed in southern China after weeks of intense rainfall.
More than 8,000 people have been infected with chikungunya in Guangdong since last month, the largest outbreak in Chinese history, and a handful of cases have also been recorded in neighbouring Hong Kong and as far afield as Beijing.
The authorities have responded with a war on mosquitoes, gassing potential breeding grounds and even deploying drones to spray insecticide in harder-to-reach areas. Locals were encouraged to play their part in the 'patriotic health campaign' by checking their neighbourhoods for stagnant water which could house mosquito larvae.
Some measures have been reminiscent of China's response to COVID-19, which was hugely successful in containing cases but led to widespread complaints due to the authorities often heavy-handed measures, particularly after restrictions were not eased when vaccines became readily available.
There was criticism on the Chinese internet when cities in neighbouring Fujian province issued travel advisories for Foshan, urging residents returning from that city to isolate for two-weeks. Photos of workers going door-to-door inspecting houses for stagnant water also raised unpleasant memories of the 'big whites,' COVID-19 workers dressed head-to-toe in PPE, who would carry out regular testing in big cities and often issue draconian isolation orders to those infected.
Foshan's anti-chikungunya campaign has been far less intense, however, and appears to have proven successful.
'The local epidemic has shown a continuous downward trend since July 29, with the daily new case number dropping to below 200 for the past five consecutive days,' down from a peak of more than 600, Wen Xi, vice-mayor of Foshan, said at a news conference Saturday.
Xia Yankai, a researcher at Nanjing Medical University's school of public health, said that both mosquito-control and widespread testing were critical to containing outbreaks of chikungunya.
'Although the disease does not spread from person to person, if a case is detected in an area previously free of the disease, identifying an infected person and interrupting their related transmission pathways, as well as promptly detecting importation risks, is of great significance for the entire region's prevention and control efforts,' Dr. Xia told The Globe and Mail.
He noted the apparent effectiveness of the measures taken in Guangdong, adding the general response to public health emergencies 'has become much faster' since the COVID-19 pandemic.
'Health systems in many areas are mobilized, and information on incoming and outgoing cases can be shared and co-ordinated across regions,' Dr. Xia said.
Progress against the chikungunya outbreak could yet be undermined by the weather, however. This summer has seen torrential downpours across southern China, with Hong Kong issuing a record four black rainstorm warnings – the most severe level – in a week earlier this month.
Speaking Sunday, the territory's health director Ronald Lam said hotter, wetter summers as a result of global warming made it easier for the mosquitoes which spread chikungunya to breed.
'If nearby regions continue to have cases and travellers bring them into Hong Kong, the risk of importation will persist and may increase,' Dr. Lam said.
'If this risk becomes higher and our mosquito control measures are not well executed, we cannot rule out a potential localized transmission.'
According to the World Health Organization, 2025 has been a peak year for chikungunya, with more than 240,000 cases of the virus recorded in 16 territories so far.
The insects which spread chikungunya can also harbour dengue, Zika and yellow fever, and in new guidelines issued last month, the WHO warned that 'once limited to tropical and subtropical climates, the Aedes mosquitoes that transmit these diseases are spreading to new regions due to climate change, population growth and increased travel and urbanization, increasing the risk of outbreaks.'
With files from Alexandra Li in Beijing
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