Chicago Fire is a series that can get hold of your heart and never give it back. It is not as simple as firefighters who blaze into burning buildings. It is all about life in uniform and about the family established at Firehouse 51.

Over the years, viewers have been hooked up to characters like Casey, Severide, Boden, and Kidd. They have rejoiced with them in their victories, and have wept with them in their defeats.

However, most importantly, Chicago Fire is aware of the special strategy to keep the viewers hooked to the show: cliffhangers. They leave you with situations that you cannot stop wondering about.

Will anyone live? Who’s trapped? Is a firehouse quitter? Having done their trick season after season, these endings leave viewers in suspense. Below is a list of the most epic Chicago Fire cliffhangers that had us dying to watch the next episode.

Chicago Fire: 6 biggest cliffhangers

1. Casey trapped underwater- Season 2, episode 10 (Not Like This)

This was a cliff-hanger that caused a full-scale panic attack in everyone. In this episode of Chicago Fire, a house collapses during a fire. In an attempt to rescue a trapped victim, Matt Casey plunges through the floor, where he becomes stuck in a flooded basement.

In the next scene, Casey can be seen entirely submerged in the water, attempting to survive on very little oxygen. In the meantime, it is not clear where he really is. His radio is defective and is running low on air. The screen fades to black when he is about to faint.

The painful feeling of this cliffhanger was how realistic it was. No bonus bangs and slow-motion scenes- there was silence, a man trying to stay alive. Fans would wait weeks to find out whether Casey makes it out alive.

2. House on Fire – Season 3, Episode 10 (Santa Bites)

Stars: Boden, Stacy Keach. Chief Boden is the foundation of Station 51. As a result, when his family is threatened, all is discombobulated. It is an outrageous cliffhanger when the house of Boden is burned down with his wife and a baby inside.

The episode concludes with Boden running to his burning house, making an effort to reach his family. The fire is already uncontrollable, and we do not know whether they are safe. The last scene shows him running straight into the smoke.

The intensity of this cliffhanger was based on how personal it was. This was not only a job: Boden was in danger of losing his whole world. The guy who never fails to rescue had to save his family now, and we did not know whether he could get there on time.

3. The Boat Explosion – Season 5, Episode 22 (My Miracle)

This was another kick in the stomach. During the Season 5 finale, a few characters of Firehouse 51 are called to the scene of a blaze on a boat on the river. The whole arrangement is not right, and it does not take very long to figure out why.

Meanwhile, in the boat, Severide, Casey, Herrmann, and Mouch see something odd: gasoline. The moment they are shown attempting to get away, the boat blows up.

The last few scenes depict the crew emerging amidst flames and rubble. What is even worse is that Mouch seems to have a heart attack. The screen fades to black, leaving no answers.

Viewers were made to wait a whole summer before they could know who was alive and who was dead. The issue of the death of many characters simultaneously was too much to handle. And all this with the worst part? Chicago Fire did not provide us with any clues.

4. Casey and the Crumbling Building – Season 6, Episode 22 (One for the Ages)

This cliff hanger went a step further and put Casey’s life on the line more times than we can count. Casey and Kidd attempt to evacuate a man trapped in the rubble of a collapsing apartment house, and in the process, they undertake a risky rescue operation. But suddenly, the building begins to fall around them.

When the air turns dusty and beams fall down to the ground, we observe that Casey pushes Kidd aside, but then he is swallowed by the rubble. The episode concludes by leaving no confirmation of his life or burying him. The picture of falling debris and a blaring alarm lingers in your mind after the credits. Furthermore, since Casey was such a main player in Chicago Fire, the feeling of losing him was heart-wrenching.

5. Severide missing in action – Episode 12, Season 11 (How Does It End?)

This was a puzzling and anxiety-provoking one. In the middle of Season 11 of Chicago Fire, Severide is deployed on an assignment in a different town by the Office of Fire Investigation. However, weeks later, he has yet to come back.

Kidd starts to be concerned. There are unanswered calls. Late updates cease to arrive. The firehouse is plunged into darkness. Viewers are also in the dark about what Severide might up to, or if he is all right.

The suspense in this case was not of fire or the wreckage. It was silence. The fact that a brave and reliable character such as Severide may simply disappear and leave no traces caused fans to become extremely nervous. And given the facts that in real life, Taylor Kinney (the actor) has taken a break from his participation in Chicago Fire, the plot becomes even more unpredictable.

6. Life on the line of Kidd – Season 10, Episode 1 (Mayday)

This cliffhanger technically started in the final episode of season 9 of Chicago Fire and was extended to season 10. In the last episode, as the Squad attempts to save a person, they become trapped underwater in a sinking boat. Kidd is on dry land, left helplessly watching Severide and the others move further and further into the blackness that slowly swallows them.

The final few moments of the Chicago Fire finale become nearly silent, with the only thing portrayed being the picture of the water and the possibly submerged divers. Then… the screen goes black, leaving behind merely the sense of uncertainty regarding the possibility of anybody’s survival. However, it was another blow to Severide and Kidd, who were just taking a large step in their relationship. It was emotional torture to wait to find out whether they would be able to even have a future.

The fires, rescues, and action may be the most popular things about Chicago Fire, but it is the emotional stakes that make the show so addictive. Every cliffhanger is something that will make you die to watch the next episode.

These six cliff-hangers are proof that Chicago Fire is a show that knows how to leave us breathless. Whether it is an explosion, a missing firefighter, or a burning home, every moment leaves us with questions that are impossible to forget. We worry. We wonder. And the most important of all, we are returning because we are concerned.

The fire station, 51, has been more than a group. They’re family. And when their lives are at stake, it seems like ours are too. This is the strength of a good cliffhanger – and the reason why we still love Chicago Fire.