Eight children were hospitalized midway through a choir concert after experiencing “seizure-like symptoms,” according to officials via PEOPLE. This wild medical mystery happened in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on July 22 to children between the ages of 11 and 13.
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8 Choir Children Experiencing “Seizure-Like Symptoms” Rushed To Hospital
The French choir group, Chœur d’Enfants d’Île-de-France, was performing in Harvard Square at St. Paul’s Parish for a free concert. According to WCVB, by around 7 PM local time, emergency responders received reports of a child suffering from a seizure.
Although it started with one child, by the time firefighters arrived, more children began suffering from similar symptoms. Strangely, the first child affected was not actively seizing by the time first responders arrived.
“That quickly escalated into 7 other people having seizure-like symptoms,” said fire chief Thomas Cahill. “They were all transported to hospitals around the Cambridge area.”
No one else seemed to be affected by these seizure-like symptoms. The crowd consisted of around 70 people. Still, several adults and students reported strange odor smells in the building. Emergency personnel checked out the building, and they couldn’t smell anything bad.
Cahill was still confused as to what had happened. “This was somewhat unusual,” said the fire chief. “It was a routine medical call that quickly escalated into transporting eight children to the hospital. Not common.”
A Medical Mystery
By the time the children arrived at the hospital, all of them seemed perfectly healthy. It didn’t take long for doctors to discharge them.
Even weirder, teams in hazmat suits checked the entire building but found no readings. The Cambridge MA Fire Department made a Facebook post to explain their findings.
“Eight people were treated for non-life-threatening medical emergencies on scene,” it said. “The Fire Dept hazmat team completed a thorough survey of the St. Paul buildings utilizing several air sampling meters to ensure that no hazardous conditions were present.”
They also noticed the area was well ventilated, which makes this even more of a mystery. Investigators have no idea what caused the eight children to experience those seizures.
“We are in the process of clearing the building to turn it back over to Harvard University at this time,” Cahill added.