2 boaters killed in high-speed crash on Colorado River along Arizona-California border

PHOENIX – Two men were killed Tuesday in a boat crash on the Colorado River along the Arizona-California border, authorities said.

The 25-foot watercraft was traveling at a high speed when it hit the rocky shoreline on the Arizona side of the river around 4:50 p.m., according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office.

The boat wound up in the reeds along the California shoreline north of Lake Havasu, near the Topock Gorge section of the Colorado River.

The San Bernardino County and Lake Havasu City fire departments responded to the scene and started treating the two patients.

One of the men was pronounced dead at the scene, while the other died after being airlifted to a hospital.

They were later identified as 33-year-old Noah Welch and 53-year-old James Rutherford Jr. Both men resided in California.

The investigation into the deadly boat crash is ongoing.

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