Chicago Fire halts production due to positive COVID tests

Chicago Fire has been hit by COVID once again. The drama was slowed down in 2020 due to the global pandemic, and how its putting a halt on production due to a recent string of positive COVID tests.

Chicago Fire resumed production after the holiday break and filmed as recently as January 4th before cast and crew were notified of the positive tests. According to Deadline, producers took immediate steps to shut down production and trace the contact of the strain per NBCU guidelines.

Is Chicago Fire season 10 delayed?

There’s not yet been word on whether Chicago Med or Chicago PD have been hit by positive COVID tests, though another procedural drama, NCIS, has also been forced to pause production. In the case of Chicago Fire and NCIS, the positive tests were in Zone A, which means it most likely involves the cast.

Showrunner Derek Haas has been forthright about maintaining COVID rules during production of the show’s tenth season. “When we go out and about, outside the firehouse, we’re wearing masks when we deal with the public — as opposed to inside the firehouse where we’ve found that’s just not what’s happening”, he told Us Weekly.

Watch One Chicago on fuboTV: Watch over 67 live sports and entertainment channels with a 7-day FREE trial!

"“We are testing like crazy and we would never ask actors to do anything that they don’t feel comfortable with. That’s been our policy for nine years”, Haas added. “If we ever have an issue, we’ll adjust accordingly. … We’re all figuring it out together, and I do trust my cast. I can’t say enough about how great our cast and crew are. So, fingers crossed. But you know, I’m nervous.”"

Despite the nervousness, the halt on production shouldn’t last too long. The source for Deadline stated that show is looking to restart production as early as Monday or Tuesday of next week.

This shouldn’t affect the rollout of episodes slated for January, which will eventually be interrupted by the airing of the Winter Olympics at the end of the month. Here’s hoping the scheduling will work out in a way that everybody stays safe and no major delays are necessary.

For the latest Chicago Fire season 10 spoilers and news, plus more on the entire series, follow the Chicago Fire category at One Chicago Center.