Hong Kong is on high alert after the city logged its first locally acquired chikungunya infection on Sunday.

An 82-year-old woman living in Fung Tak Estate in Diamond Hill, Wong Tai Sin district, tested positive for the virus despite having no recent travel history.

City-wide anti-mosquito operations are now under way to prevent the spread of the chikungunya virus and health officers are reaching out to people living within a 200-metre radius of the patient’s home – considered the high-risk area – urging them to seek treatment if they develop symptoms of the disease.

The Post looks into how one could stay protected from the mosquito-borne disease.

1. Why is a locally acquired case more significant than an imported one?

Hong Kong reported its first local chikungunya fever cases nearly three months after the first imported case was revealed in early August.

Authorities are on high alert as the 82-year-old contracted the virus without leaving the city.