Over 7,000 people have caught the chikungunya virus in Guangdong province since mid-June, spreading to 13 cities across one of China’s most crowded regions. Monsoon flooding left standing water everywhere,

Chikungunya is a disease caused by a virus of the same name. The chikungunya virus was first identified in people sickened during an outbreak in Tanzania in 1952. Its name is derived from a word in the Makonde language, which means “that which bends up,” due to the severe pain it can cause.