Successful business owners killed in high-speed boat crash after vessel hit land and went airborne

Two prominent business owners have been killed after their boat slammed into a peninsula at high speed before going airborne and crashing into a campsite.

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Charles Romer, 65, and Jennifer Luzzi, 59, both of Lake Havasu City, Arizona, were pronounced dead following the crash on Lake Havasu on Saturday night.

Mohave County Sheriff’s Office Division of Boating Safety deputies responded to the area of Cattail Cove State Park at around 7:08 p.m. Saturday after receiving reports of a boating collision.

When deputies arrived, they found a 2019 36-foot Douglas Marine boat upside down on land on the Arizona side of the lake, just north of Cattail Cove State Park.

The two occupants were found unresponsive near the wreckage.

Deputies immediately began performing life-saving measures on the pair, while firefighters from San Bernardino County and Lake Havasu City also responded.

Despite the emergency efforts, both Romer and Luzzi were pronounced dead at the scene.

Authorities have not released additional details about what caused the boat to strike the peninsula or whether any other factors contributed to the crash.

According to the initial press release, the watercraft was traveling at a high rate of speed when it struck the large peninsula, sending the vessel airborne.

The boat then continued through the air before landing in a boat-in campsite north of the initial impact, authorities said.

The vessel was ultimately found upside down on land, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office.

The deadly crash has sent shockwaves through the Lake Havasu City community, where both Romer and Luzzi were well-known figures in local business circles.

Romer, known as Charles “Chip” Romer, was a prominent figure in offshore performance boat racing and previously held the “King of the Desert” title, awarded to the fastest driver at Desert Storm’s Shugrue’s Shootout, one of the marquee speed competitions held during the annual Lake Havasu event, according to Powerboat News.

Romer was also the original owner of “Dial 911,” a Skater 388 built by Douglas Marine’s Skater Powerboats in 2010. The high-performance catamaran made its debut at the Desert Storm shootout, where Romer and TNT Custom Marine’s John Tomlinson recorded a 157-mph pass.

His racing career extended beyond powerboats.

Romer competed in sports car racing at the national level and 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.

Away from racing, Romer was president of Romer Beverage Company, a family-owned Anheuser-Busch distributor headquartered in Kingman, Arizona.

The company, founded in 1982, serves Mohave, La Paz and Yuma counties and operates warehouses in Kingman and Lake Havasu City.

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Luzzi was similarly well known around Lake Havasu City, where she had worked in real estate for years. She ran The Jennifer Luzzi Group with Keller Williams Arizona Living Realty, a team that was ranked sixth among small real estate teams in Arizona for units sold in 2026 by RealTrends.

Luzzi had lived in Lake Havasu City for about three decades after moving there from Huntington Beach, California, in 1995.

Friends and colleagues have since taken to social media to remember the pair and mourn their sudden deaths.

Neville Agass, who said he first knew Romer as a customer before the two became close friends, described him as a passionate and accomplished businessman who also enjoyed racing, boating, off-roading and flying.

“He was a very passionate person at whatever he took on and was a very accomplished and successful businessman, pilot, race car driver, off roader, boater and family man,” Agass wrote on Facebook.

Agass said Romer “fitted more into his lifetime” than he could imagine fitting into five, adding that he would miss their phone calls, meetings at the racetrack and visits in Lake Havasu.

“I’m really going to miss our catchup phone calls and meetups at the race track and of course our visits with him at Lake Havasu,” he added.

The Lake Havasu Association of Realtors also paid tribute to both victims, with president Phil Annett describing their deaths as a devastating loss for the community.

“The passing of our dear friends Jennifer Luzzi and Chip Romer has suspended reality for all of us,” Annett wrote. “It was way too soon, and completely unfair on all accounts.”

Annett said both had left a lasting mark on their families, friends and Lake Havasu, writing that their impact on the community would not be forgotten.

“They will forever live in our hearts,” he wrote. “Both of these friends have made an unforgettable impact on their family, friends and the city of lake havasu.”

Chad Nelson of The A Team Real Estate Professionals remembered Luzzi as “a Havasu icon” who was an “incredible mother, a talented athlete” and a dedicated professional.

“Jennifer was truly a class act and a Havasu icon,” Nelson wrote. “Her energy, strength, kindness, and love for this community will not be forgotten.”

“She was an incredible mother, a talented athlete, a dedicated professional, and, most importantly, a wonderful friend,” she added.

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