DESERT WINDS

University Official Dies in Accident at U.S. Historic Landmark

Police do not suspect foul play.

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A university official died in an accident during a group tour of a U.S. historic landmark. Rogério Renato Mateucci, rector of the Pontifical Catholic University of Paraná in Brazil, was struck by roofing material blown loose by strong winds and was pronounced dead at the scene in Scottsdale, Arizona, on Friday. Police are investigating, though they do not suspect foul play. Wind gusts reached 32 mph as Mateucci toured the late architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin West home. Established in 1937, Wright’s winter home and desert laboratory later became home to the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. “The Foundation extends its deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of the individual who died Friday,” a foundation spokesperson wrote on Facebook. The property is now temporarily closed to the public. Mateucci had been the Catholic university’s most senior official since 2022. The university canceled classes at its three campuses and scheduled a memorial Mass for Monday. “Death is a ‘vigorous reality,’ a reality that awakens us, compels us to become aware of our deepest values; a reality that invites us to create, to think, to seek meaning in our own lives,” the university said in a news release.