South China's Guangdong Province reported 1,431 new dengue cases, bringing the total number up to 21,527, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported on Monday.
The number was rising quickly, with more than 1,000 new cases found each day last week, said local health authorities. One new fatality case was reported on Sunday, bringing the death toll in the province to six.
The latest case was found in western Guangzhou, Guangdong's capital, which has seen five deaths of dengue so far this year. With 18,192 cases confirmed, Guangzhou is the worst-hit city in the province.
Dengue is a mosquito-borne, potentially fatal disease that affects between 50 and 100 million people in tropical and subtropical regions every year, causing fever combined with muscle and joint aches. Chen Jianhua, mayor of Guangzhou, urged at a seminar on Sunday to step up efforts in killing mosquitos. He also called for early detection of the epidemic, early medical treatment, and early quarantine so as to check the spread of dengue.
The outbreak of dengue in China this year is believed to be the worst in 20 years. Health authorities attribute the outbreak to high temperatures and wet weather in Guangdong, where the mosquito population is five times the normal level.