PARIS, March 9 (Xinhuanet) -- More than 80 percent of people on the French Indian Ocean island of Reunion risk contracting chikungunya, a disabling mosquito-borne disease, an expert said on Thursday.

    Chikungunya is spreading fast, with some 20,000 people falling victim to the disease every week, said Antoine Flahaut, president of the French national coordination team on chikungunya research.

    So far, 180,000 of a total of 780,000 residents on the island have contracted the disease. More than 80 percent of the residents are facing the danger of being infected, he said.

    Chikungunya, a disease believed to have originated from Africa,derives from a Swahili word meaning "that which bends up" because of its arthritic-type symptoms that leave victims stooped.

    Much about the disease, which is contracted by mosquito bites, remains unclear. It is thought to have caused or contributed to the deaths of 93 people on Reunion.

    France has dispatched an emergency health aid worth 91 million euros (109 million dollars) for Reunion to help it fight the disease.

    Some 500 French troops have also been deployed to the island to help health workers spray mosquito breeding areas, and efforts are being made in France to develop a vaccine against the virus that causes the disease.

    The French Health Ministry has ordered hospitals on the island to properly record all people who show up at clinics with chikungunya, so as to have a clear picture of the epidemic. Enditem