Why are fans worried about Severide leaving Chicago Fire? Explained

Chicago Fire's 13th season has started seeing its share of interpersonal conflicts within the Chicago Fire Department. By the time of season 13, episode 2, Kelly Severide was beginning to struggle immensely between his conflicting loyalties to his family and his profession.

Kelly Severide's half-brother, Jack Damon, gained a bit of a maverick instinct in the second episode while working under the command of Stella Kidd.

While answering an emergency call concerning a woman trapped under a boat, Damon refused Kidd's orders to hand back and rushed into action. Kidd let this slide because she assumed he didn't hear her, but Damon later admitted to Kelly that he actually had, and deliberately defied his superior.

Kelly initially decided to cover for Damon. However, he later had a conversation with Joe Cruz, with the latter warning him about letting his attachment to his family get the better of him. This prompted Kelly to reveal the truth to Kidd, who was furious with him for keeping secrets in the first place.

The episode 3 preview hints at Chief Dom Pascal taking matters into his own hands and dismissing someone from Firehouse 51. Because of Kelly's own involvement in the scandal, fans are worried he may be on his way out.

---

Chicago Fire's Kelly Severide may be in trouble

Kelly Severide is currently one of the longest-serving cast members in Chicago Fire, but the series has seen a turnover of even stalwarts in the past. The most notable example of this would be Lt Matthew Casey (played by Jesse Spencer), who started out as the co-lead of the series alongside Kelly, only to be eventually written out of the show in season 10.

Kelly Severide has already had a few tense exchanges with the new Battalion Chief Dom Pascal, most notably regarding his prior relationship with Stella Kidd.

Dom noted that firefighters aren't supposed to serve alongside family members because it might create a conflict of interest, but he ultimately didn't pursue the matter any further because he trusted that Kelly was managing his relationships appropriately.

Kelly's recent efforts to cover Dom's insubordination, however, serves as direct evidence of his family ties affecting his professionalism, giving Dom ample grounds to crack down on Kelly's conduct, if he so chooses.

Kelly himself seemed to realize the negative impact his relationship with Dom was having. He had a conversation with Dom in episode 2, where he clearly stated that he didn't believe the two could keep working alongside each other.

It's possible that Dom dismisses Damon instead of Kelly in episode 3. (Image via NBC)

In the promo for Chicago Fire season 13 episode 3, Dom speaks to someone offscreen, claiming that they violated his trust, and he's dismissing them from the force. This has led fans to speculate that the man he's going to fire might be none other than Kelly himself.

Should Kelly Severide be written out of Chicago Fire in this manner, it would close the book on one of the longest-serving characters in the series' entire run. While Kelly losing his position because of his unprofessionalism would make for a dramatic exit, it can also seem like a rather indignified exit for someone who's been on the series for so long.

It may very well be the case that Dom Pascal won't dismiss Kelly but perhaps will dismiss Damon instead since his unprofessionalism is what's caused all these problems to begin with.

It's also possible that Dom might end up dismissing someone else entirely, perhaps someone completely unconnected to the conflict between Kelly, Damon, and Kidd.

---

Chicago Fire airs on Wednesdays, 9 pm ET, on NBC.