If you’re caught up on Chicago Fire season 14, you’re likely among the many fans who have been heading into the fourth episode of the season terrified the show was about to deliver its most heartbreaking death yet.
For those who haven’t seen the promo for episode 4, it reveals that a house fire begins at Herrmann’s home. Not only is the Herrmann house on fire, but we learn that Herrmann’s daughter Annabelle had stayed home from school that day and was there when the fire broke out. Toss in the scenes of a distraught Herrmann racing through the house, trying to find his daughter before it’s too late, and our nerves were shot.
Would the show really kill off Herrmann’s daughter in a house fire? That was the fear we had going into the episode, but fortunately, spoilers courtesy a new image from episode 5 reveal that will not be the case.
Herrmann is about to lose his home on Chicago Fire, but his family will be safe
Although Annabelle is revealed to have been at home in the episode, it seems she will somehow make it out of the fire safely. While we’ll have to wait to see whether she was in the house by the time 51 responded or if she had already gotten to safety before crews showed up, one thing that is certain is Annabelle will not be dying in the episode. And that’s such a relief.
We’ve seen a lot of tragedy on Chicago Fire over its 14-season run, but killing off a central character’s child would have been a whole other level of heartbreak. Thankfully, it seems the writers felt the same.
In a photo from the fifth episode of the season, “Ghosts,” it seems that Herrmann’s 51 family will be rallying behind him after his family loses their home in the fire. We see the 51 team coming together at Molly’s for a “Pass the Boot” fundraising event and in one photo from the episode, we get a clear shot of a flyer promoting the event.
The flyer reveals that, “fire claimed their home, and now they need our help.” This detail seems to confirm with certainty that Annabelle not only survives the fire, but also hints she wasn’t inside the house or injured in any way. After all, if she had been injured, wouldn’t the fundraiser lead with that in looking to raise money to support her recovery?
Of course, while it’s good news to know that Annabelle will be okay and is not in danger as the promo suggested, it’s still heartbreaking to know that Herrmann and his family are going to lose their home in the fire. It’s been a rough season already for Herrmann in adjusting to his new role at the firehouse, and it appears that things are about to get even more complicated for him as the season continues.