University Official Killed in Freak Accident While Touring Frank Lloyd Wright Home in Arizona

Frank Lloyd Wright‘s historic Taliesin West home in Scottsdale, Arizona, was the site of a tragic freak accident on Friday, October 16, that claimed the life of a Brazilian university official.

Rogério Renato Mateucci had served as rector of the Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná since 2022, per AZ Family, which noted that the rector is often the most senior official in universities outside the U.S.

Authorities in Scottsdale reported that Mateucci, 55, was struck in the head by an acrylic object that was ripped from the roof by strong winds at approximately 2 p.m., Brazil’s G1 reported.

First responders said Mateucci died instantly and was pronounced dead at the scene, per G1. Police do not suspect foul play, the outlet reported, and are treating his death as a weather-related accident.

According to the National Weather Service, cited by AZ Family, winds reached as high as 22 mph in Scottsdale at the time of the incident, with gusts up to 32 mph. The outlet further noted that October 16 was declared a First Alert Day, a designation to warn about possibly hazardous or extreme weather.

Taliesin West was built in 1937 and served as the famed architect’s winter home and desert laboratory. It is now the headquarters of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, which announced in a Facebook statement that the site would remain closed until further notice.

“The Foundation extends its deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of the individual who died Friday, October 16,” the statement read.

The university canceled classes on Saturday, October 17, and Monday, October 19, according to an announcement on its Instagram page. A Mass in Mateucci’s memory was set for Monday evening and streamed on the university’s YouTube channel.

“For those who believe, life is not taken from us, but transformed,” PUCPR said in a news release announcing Mateucci’s death on its website, per People. “Therefore, united by faith in the resurrection, let us now join in prayer for our dearest Brother Rogério.”

Mateucci held a degree in pedagogy and a doctorate in educational leadership from Fordham University. Funeral arrangements will be made once his body has been repatriated to Brazil, per the New York Post.