If you’re going to be a Chicago Fire fan, you’re going to have to get used to saying goodbye.
The fact is, this show is packed with unlucky characters who meet untimely ends.
Because it’s a show about responding to emergencies, the episodes often involve the death of a minor character, and sometimes those stick with you long after the credits roll.
Several Chicago Fire deaths have shaken us, broken us, and left us crying into our pillows.
In the first twelve seasons, we said goodbye to an outrageous number of beloved heroes and unlucky victims.
Some hurt more than others, and at this point we’re holding our breath.
If we lose any of the remaining cast, there just might be a riot.
Chicago Fire Showrunner Andrea Newman recently told us that the cast feels like a family, and that’s probably part of why it hurts so much when one of them is killed off.
It’s a testament to the show’s writers that these Chicago Fire losses will stay with us forever.
Foul Play: Dr. Hallie Thomas
We know that Casey eventually got his happy ending, but before there was Sylvie, Casey’s heart belonged to Hallie.
A fiery death is an awful way to go for anyone, but especially someone who was engaged to a firefighter.
The most tragic part of this loss was that Casey was too late to save Hallie, and that would weigh on him forever.
On the bright side, Hallie’s death led to the Chicago P.D. spinoff, so at least there’s that.
Wrong Place, Wrong Time: Leslie Shay
With so little LGBTQ+ representation on the show, Shay’s death hit a little harder than most.
An iconic lesbian character, Shay was beloved by her coworkers and friends, especially Severide and Gabby.
The thing that killed her was a total freak accident, but for LGBTQ+ fans, the loss felt personal.
It was a sad example of the “bury your gays” trope, and it’s devastating that we didn’t get to see Shay live happily ever after.
Natural Causes: Benny Severide
Treat Williams’ portrayal of Benny Severide was nothing short of iconic, and that made his death a huge bummer for Chicago Fire fans.
Sure, the character was complicated.
As of Season 12, we’ve already learned that he secretly fathered at least two children that his son Kelly Severide never knew about.
But despite their tense relationship, Kelly was still deeply impacted by his father’s sudden death.
Heroic Actions: Evan Hawkins
Ugh, this one stings.
As much as we ship Carver and Violet and hope to see them together in Season 13, there is no one like Hawkins.
Violet loved him so much, and her desperate efforts to save him were hard to watch.
Hawkins died a hero, saving a victim’s life, but that doesn’t make it hurt any less.
Explosive Goodbye: Brian “Otis” Zvonecek
Nobody felt this loss like Cruz, but everyone grieved the shocking death of Otis.
At the memorial where Chief Boden dedicated a statue to Otis, Cruz openly wept for his friend.
I get it: Chicago Fire is soapy, and it has had some devastating moments, but seeing Cruz work through this loss is up there with the worst of them.
Otis may have died after a boiler exploded, but his memory lives on in his namesake: Cruz’s son.
Natural Causes: Novak’s Patient, John
Of all the Chicago Fire deaths we’ve ever seen, this very subtle, off-screen death affected me the most.
Violet and Lizzie responded to a call where they found an elderly woman had injured herself.
Unbeknownst to the woman, her husband of five decades was dead in the next room, and Lizzie discovered his body.
It was the first time we’d seen Novak break down, and the thought of that poor old woman going on without her life partner is just too much for me to bear.
Real-Life Tragedy: Tuesday the Dalmatian
Tuesday was a very good boy, indeed.
The unofficial mascot of 51 and companion to Ritter didn’t die on the show, but the pup’s real-life death abruptly ended his time on Chicago Fire.
Fans were devastated to hear the news, and cast members remember Tuesday fondly.
According to Tuesday’s trainer, the dog experienced kidney issues and the sudden illness took him over the rainbow bridge.
After so many painful losses, Chicago Fire fans know that virtually no one on the show is safe.
Whether the writers would actually go so far as to kill off beloved staple characters like Mouch or Herrmann is anyone’s guess.
But one thing we can be sure of is that if ever we’re in need of a good cry, there are dozens of Chicago Fire episodes that can bring us to tears in an instant.
That’s why we’re refusing to get attached to new characters like Damon and Novak.
If they’re next on the writers’ hit list, we don’t want to find out after we’ve let ourselves fall in love with them.
To revisit these characters, you can watch every episode of Chicago Fire on Peacock. Don’t forget to tune in on Wednesday, September 25, at 9/8c for the Season 13 premiere!
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