10-year-old Gus Adamopoulos died of "sharp and blunt force trauma" as a result of being hit by a speedboat, District Attorney Elizabeth Scheibel said.
NORTHAMPTON – An autopsy of Augustus “Gus” Adamopoulos shows the 10-year-old Ludlow boy died of “sharp and blunt force trauma” after he was struck by a motorboat Tuesday evening on Norwich Lake in Huntington, Northwestern District Attorney Elizabeth D. Scheibel said Friday.
Scheibel declined to go into specifics from Friday’s autopsy report out of respect for the family.
Adamopoulos was out with his father, James, in a kayak on the lake when they were struck by a speedboat that was towing a water-skier, officials said. James Adamopoulos suffered a leg injury that required treatment at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield.
Scheibel identified the motorboat operator as 37-year-old Steven Morse, of 65 Deborah Lane, Westfield. She stressed that no charges have been filed against Morse, and the state Environmental Police and the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office continue to investigate the accident.
In Huntington, people who live in the vicinity of Norwich Lake are troubled by the death.
Dr. Jill A. Griffin, an emergency room physician at Springfield’s Mercy Medical Hospital, and her friend, Kimberly R. Lucey, a nurse, where not home at the time of the accident. Griffin’s home overlooks the lake at a spot where several bystanders, including Lucey’s son, brought the injured father and son to shore to give first aid.
Griffin said she received a call on her phone from Lucey’s son asking what they should do to stop the bleeding.
“I just told them to apply pressure to the wound,” Griffin said.
Griffin and Lucey each aid they wish they could have been there and are now haunted by thoughts of what they could have done to help.
“There’s a lot of guilt,” Griffin said.
At the time of the accident, the evening sun reflects off the water and creates a blinding glare. Some lake residents have wondered if that played a role in the accident.
Griffin said the glare off the water may have made it difficult for a boater to see a smaller structure, such as a kayak.
Pointing out to a spot on the lake where the accident happened, Griffin said, “As you come around the bend there, the sun can be blinding.”
Calling hours for Gus will be Sunday from 2 to 5 p.m. at Ludlow Funeral Home, 432 East St., Ludlow.
His funeral Mass is scheduled for Monday at 10 a.m. at St. Elizabeth’s Parish, 181 Hubbard St., Ludlow.
In lieu of flowers, the family is asking people to donate to the Gus Adamopoulos Memorial Fund, care of Chicopee Savings Bank, 477A Center St., Ludlow. The fund was established in his memory to benefit a worthy candidate for the Western Massachusetts Basketball Camp.