Eight Choir Children Hospitalized After Cambridge Concert

Eight children aged 11 to 13 from the Paris-based Chœur d’Enfants d’Île-de-France choir were hospitalized after experiencing seizure-like symptoms and difficulty breathing during a July 22 performance at St. Paul’s Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Some children reported a strange odor before symptoms appeared. Fire and hazmat teams evacuated the church and conducted a thorough sweep, finding no hazardous substances or abnormal air quality readings. Approximately 70 other attendees were unaffected by the incident. At least some of the affected children have since been released from local hospitals with non-life-threatening conditions. Authorities continue to investigate the cause, which remains unknown.