Adams Boy Struck, Killed Crossing East Road

Traffic was being turned back at Lime Street on Tuesday because of a fatal pedestrian accident involving a child on East Road.

Update July 8: The driver of the motor vehicle that struck Noah Brown will not be charged, according to Police Chief Richard Tarsa. The investigation concluded that the driver, whose name has not been released, was operating the vehicle properly and that speed was not a factor.

ADAMS, Mass. — An Adams boy has died after being struck by a motor vehicle Tuesday afternoon.

According to the district attorney's office, 8-year-old Noah Brown of 174 East Road and another youth were attempting to cross East Road to go to Brown's home when he was struck by a motor vehicle.  

The other boy was not injured in the accident, which was called in to police about 3 p.m.  

Noah was a third-grader at C.T. Plunkett School.

Adams-Cheshire Superintendent Kristen Gordon described him as "just a fun, little energetic, sweet, kind, little baseball player, the light of his mom's life."

Brown was transported to the Northern Berkshire Campus of Berkshire Medical Center in North Adams by members of the Adams Ambulance Service. He was pronounced dead a short time later.  

Gordon said she and Principal Michelle Colvin and staff members were currently meeting to plan how the school would address the loss on Wednesday.

Third-grade parents were being called to inform of the tragedy so their children wouldn't have to find out at school. Extra adjustment counselors will be on hand and other schools were offering support staff as needed.

"We're really encouraging parents to all send their children back [to school Wednesday] because we're going to have extra support here and we want the kids to all go through this together," Gordon said, adding that research has shown children do best in these circumstances when they can get back to their routine.

Colvin will have a letter for all the children to take home to parents on Wednesday.

"Obviously this is just devastating, and heartbreaking," Gordon said. "He was a wonderful little boy."

She said Adams Police have been very good in keeping school officials informed and that Chief Richard Tarsa had been with Noah's family and with his best friend, who had not yet been informed of Noah's passing.

Police are asking anyone who may have witnessed the accident to call the Adams Police Department at 413-743-1212.   

The investigation is being conducted by members of the Adams Police Department, state police assigned to the accident reconstruction unit and state police detectives assigned to the District Attorney’s Office.

The section of road where the accident occurred was closed off for several hours for investigators with the accident reconstruction scene.