Two well-known business owners from Lake Havasu City, Arizona, died after their boat hit a peninsula at high speed, went airborne, and crashed into a campsite.
And the victims were identified as Charles Romer, 65, and Jennifer Luzzi, 59.
Who was Charles Romer?
According to Powerboat News, Romer, known as “Chip” Romer, was a well-known offshore performance boat racer. He had previously won the “King of the Desert” title, which was given to the fastest driver at Desert Storm’s Shugrue’s Shootout.
Romer was also the original owner of “Dial 911,” a Skater 388 built by Douglas Marine’s Skater Powerboats in 2010. The high-performance boat made its debut at the Desert Storm shootout, where Romer and TNT Custom Marine’s John Tomlinson recorded a 157-mph pass.
Romer’s racing career was not limited to powerboats. As per the NY Post, he won the Prototype 1 class at the 2022 SCCA National Championship Runoffs at Virginia International Raceway. He also competed in the IMSA Prototype Challenge and Radical Cup North America.
Outside racing, Romer was the president of Romer Beverage Company, a family-owned Anheuser-Busch distributor based in Kingman, Arizona, according to the NY Post. Founded in 1982, the company serves Mohave, La Paz and Yuma counties and has warehouses in Kingman and Lake Havasu City.
{{/usCountry}}Outside racing, Romer was the president of Romer Beverage Company, a family-owned Anheuser-Busch distributor based in Kingman, Arizona, according to the NY Post. Founded in 1982, the company serves Mohave, La Paz and Yuma counties and has warehouses in Kingman and Lake Havasu City.
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Who was Jennifer Luzzi?
According to NY Post, Luzzi was well known in Lake Havasu City, where she worked in real estate for years, running The Jennifer Luzzi Group with Keller Williams Arizona Living Realty. The team was ranked sixth among small real estate teams in Arizona for units sold in 2026 by RealTrends.
As per reports, Luzzi had lived in Lake Havasu City for about three decades after moving there from Huntington Beach, California, in 1995.
How the crash happened?
Mohave County Sheriff’s Office Division of Boating Safety deputies went to the area near Cattail Cove State Park around 7:08pm Saturday after receiving reports of a boat crash.
As per the NY Post, deputies found a 2019, 36-foot Douglas Marine boat upside down on land on the Arizona side of Lake Havasu, just north of Cattail Cove State Park.
Both people on the boat were found unresponsive near the wreckage. Deputies immediately started life-saving efforts, while firefighters from San Bernardino County and Lake Havasu City also responded.
Despite the rescue efforts, Romer and Luzzi were both pronounced dead at the scene.
The initial press release said the boat was traveling at high speed when it hit a large peninsula. The impact sent the boat into the air.
The boat then flew through the air and landed at a boat-in campsite north of the crash site, authorities said. It was later found upside down on land, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office.
The authorities have not released any more details about what caused the crash.