What is the mosquito-borne disease Sri Lanka is using drones to fight?

What is the mosquito-borne disease Sri Lanka is using drones to fight?Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, The virus, which is spread to humans through mosquitoes, is common in tropical climates ByKelly Ng and Sampath Dissanayake, BBC SinhalaPublished11 minutes agoBattling its worst dengue outbreak in nearly a decade, Sri Lanka has deployed military drones to scan for stagnant pools of water on rooftops and other mosquito-breeding sites.The virus has killed 56 people and infected more than 77,000 others in the South Asian nation this year, with more than a quarter of them reported in July alone.Dengue fever, which is spread to humans through mosquitoes, is common in tropical climates.But as temperatures rise worldwide, these disease-carrying mosquitos are now moving into new areas, including Europe and the Mediterranean. According to the WHO, the number of global reported cases surged from around 500,000 in the year 2000 to 14.4 million in 2024.What is dengue fever and what are its symptoms?Dengue is a viral fever caused by the dengue virus, which is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected Aedes mosquitoes.These mosquitoes breed in stagnant water like pails, vases and flowerpot plates. They are most active during daylight hours and usually bite just after sunrise and around sunset.Many people who get dengue do not develop symptoms. For those who do, the most common symptoms include high fever, headache, muscle and joint pains, nausea and rashes. These usually resolve within a week or two.In severe cases, however, dengue can lead to internal bleeding or even death.Those who get infected a second time are at a greater risk of severe dengue.There are four strains of the dengue virus and healing from one would only protect you from that specific strain, says Kapila Kannangara, director of Sri Lanka's Dengue Control Unit."That immunity does not extend to other strains of the virus. That means someone infected by one strain of the virus could stil...