A Hell of a Ride is the twenty-fourth and final episode of the first season and the 24th overall episode of Chicago Fire.
Summary[]
When a call comes in from the Cook County jail, the squad steps into a volatile predicament and are tasked with trying to defuse an escalating situation. Shay remains hopeful about her baby dreams and Herrmann’s wife Cindy goes into labor with their fifth child. Meanwhile, Mills and Dawson face key decisions in their personal lives.
Plot[]
Source: NBC.com
The Firehouse 51 crew arrives for another shift. Herrmann, Otis and Dawson are concerned about the fate of Molly's bar; Casey is still trying to recover from the loss of Hallie, and Dawson and Mills still aren't speaking. Before they have time to settle in, the crew is called to a structure fire at the local prison. After a word with the warden, the crew heads into the prison.
Boden radios Herrmann inside to tell him that his wife has just gone into labor. Eventually, the team locates the fire in a crowded jail cell. It's a chaotic scene. The room is filled with smoke and dangerous inmates. As soon as the fire is safely extinguished, the prison loses power, and the firefighters find themselves locked in a dark room with dangerous inmates.
Source: NBC.com
Outside, Boden scrambles to get the power back on, but the prison is locked down until the power grid resets itself. Unwilling to wait any longer, Boden orders Severide and the Squad Team to breach the prison. While Severide struggles to break into the prison block, a guard discovers that the cells in the main prison block have been opened, allowing the inmates to roam freely. The scene is becoming more dangerous by the second.
Source: NBC.com
While Severide struggles to break in to the prison, Boden receives word that Herrmann's wife is undergoing an emergency C-section, but he chooses to withhold the information until the prison situation is extinguished. Meanwhile, inside the cellblock, Casey and Herrmann discover that a guard has been murdered and hidden in an empty cell. The inmates have stolen the guard's keys, giving them access to the entire prison.
Source: NBC.com
In the midst of the chaos, Dawson and Mills find a moment for a much-needed heart-to-heart. Otis and Mouch frantically try to get the power back on while Casey, Herrmann and the prison guard keep an army of angry prisoners at bay. One of the prisoners holds a shiv to Herrmann's throat. From outside the prison, Boden is powerless to help his men.
Source: NBC.com
Casey cautiously herds the rioting prisoners to the chapel. Casey tries to negotiate the hostage crisis with Herrmann, but the prisoners are reluctant to compromise unless Casey turns the surviving prison guard over. Meanwhile, Severide breeches the prison doors to save Dawson and Mills. It's a small victory, but they're still far from safe.
Source: NBC.com
Severide finds the prison engineer and puts him on the radio to talk Mouch through an electrical reset. Shay reports that Herrmann's wife gave birth to a baby boy. Herrmann manages to break free from the prisoner, and a full on riot almost breaks out. Luckily, the firefighters manage to lock themselves in an office. Mouch gets the power back on just as Severide opens a vent to flood the room with smoke, incapacitating the prisoners.
Source: NBC.com
After receiving word that the baby might be in trouble, Herrmann rushes to the hospital. Luckily, Herrmann's wife and baby are fine by the time he arrives. Boden tells Mills that the higher-ups have decided not to promote him to Squad. The Chief encourages Mills to keep at it, but Mills is fed up with the politics of the Firehouse. He heads to the police department to fill out an application
Source: NBC.com
Dawson goes to Casey's house to reveal her true feelings. She finds him living in squalor, a broken man since Hallie's death. Dawson will have to put him back together again. Otis learns that a giant sports bar is being built right next to Molly's. Severide learns that Renee has returned to town to inform him that she's pregnant with his baby.
Cast[]
Main Cast[]
- Jesse Spencer as Lieutenant Matthew Casey
- Taylor Kinney as Lieutenant Kelly Severide
- Monica Raymund as Paramedic Gabriela Dawson
- Lauren German as Paramedic Leslie Shay
- Charlie Barnett as Firefighter Candidate Peter Mills
- David Eigenberg as Firefighter Christopher Herrmann
- Joe Minoso as Firefighter Joe Cruz
- Yuri Sardarov as Firefighter Brian "Otis" Zvonecek
- Christian Stolte as Firefighter Randy "Mouch" McHolland
- Eamonn Walker as Battalion Chief Wallace Boden
Recurring Cast[]
- Randy Flagler as Firefighter Harold Capp
- Robyn Coffin as Cindy Herrmann
- David Von Kampen as Lee Henry Herrmann
- Lucas Von Kampen as Luke Herrmann
- Amanda Calabrese as Annabelle Herrmann
- Logan Vosburgh as Max Herrmann
- Sarah Shahi as Renee Royce
Guest Cast[]
- Phil Ridarelli as Facilities Roy
- Boise Holmes as Officer Fojas
- Dennis Hindman as John Walker
- Nestor Serrano as Rick Esposito
- Richard Cabral as Inmate Rios
- Jeremy Earl as Randall
- Cindy Chang as Mari
- David Hernandez as Acevedo
- Domenick Lombardozzi as Lucci
- Molly Glynn as ER Doctor
- Cheridah Best as Nurse
Notes and Trivia[]
- This episode would later be referenced in the sixth season episode When They See Us Coming by Casey.