Chicago Fire Premiere Reveals Cruz’s Fate, Pascal’s Exit

Chicago Fire’s Season 15 premiere resolved the warehouse cliffhanger by revealing that Joe Cruz survived the collapse but suffered a fractured spine. The episode also marks Battalion Chief Dominic Pascal’s final appearance, leaving Firehouse 51 without a chief and placing Kelly Severide in a leading role. A three-month time jump shows Cruz alive and using a wheelchair. An MRI indicates that the remaining healthy tissue at the site of his injury is not enough for him to continue working as a firefighter, according to a recap of the episode. The premiere does not establish whether he will recover or what his longer-term place in the firehouse will be. Cruz was injured after entering the warehouse to rescue people trapped inside during the fire that ended Season 14. Debris fell on him as he broke through a wall. The episode shows other members of Firehouse 51 supporting Cruz and his family as he prepares to return home and undergo treatment. The series had left Cruz’s fate unresolved at the end of the previous season. Pascal, played by Dermot Mulroney, exits in the same premiere.