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Friends and colleagues of a Brazilian college president killed in a freak accident at an Arizona tourist attraction have demanded answers after the scholar was fatally struck by a piece of stray roofing.
Rogério Renato Mateucci, 55, was on a group tour of Taliesin West, the former home of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright, on Friday at around 2 p.m. when 32 mph winds dislodged a piece of roofing.
“I think the security measures must be taken because it’s a public place,” Vidal Martins, 57, who traveled with Mateucci to Arizona from Brazil’s Pontifical Catholic University of Parana, told the Arizona Republic.
Martins said the group was in the US to learn about Arizona State University’s management, and that Mateucci, an architecture fan, went on a sightseeing trip to Taliesin West after the ASU sessions ended.
“Everything was wonderful until that moment,” Martins said, adding that his wife helped get the tickets for Mateucci.
Another group member who went with Mateucci on the tour called Martins to report that a piece of acrylic from the roof had struck the college president in the head.
The caller described heavy bleeding and efforts to save Mateucci, Martins said.
“The situation was very, very severe,” he said.
Less than five minutes later, the woman called back to say Mateucci had died.
“Are you sure?” Martins recalled asking, saying that he had known Mateucci for about 10 years.
Martins didn’t attend the tour but went to Taliesin West afterward, where he saw Mateucci’s body in an area authorities had closed off.
He questioned why only one piece of roofing had come loose, and said that made him question whether it had been properly secured.
Martins said he had noticed strong winds that day in Tempe.
Much of Arizona was under wind alerts on Friday, including metro Phoenix, where a wind advisory was in effect at the time of Mateucci’s death.
Martins said the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation hadn’t contacted him in the wake of the death, but ASU and the Brazilian consulate had both offered help.
The house, which was completed in 1937 to be Lloyd Wright’s winter residence, remains shut until further notice.
“The foundation extends its deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of the individual,” Foundation CEO Joe Specter said in a statement shared with The Post.
“No further details will be shared out of respect for privacy and to allow officials to complete their work,” he added.
