Spoiler alert! The following story identifies the character who died during the ABC crossover event of Station 19 and Grey’s Anatomy.
Station 19 fans were shocked to lose an original cast member during the November 11 episode “Things We Lost in the Fire.” The Season 5 installment was part of a crossover event with Grey’s Anatomy, in which a ruptured gas line caused an explosion that decimated a Seattle neighborhood. Station 19’s Dean Miller, played by Okieriete Onaodowan, was killed in a second explosion, marking the end of the actor’s 66-episode run on the ABC drama. Despite Miller’s tragic ending, Onaodowan had nothing but kind words for Station 19 creator Shonda Rhimes following the episode.
ABC was big on teasing that someone would die when the Seattle dramas returned from a short hiatus for the latest dramatic crossover. The assumption from the promos and episode descriptions was that the death would come from Station 19’s side of the event. And though Vic, Maya, Sullivan and Chief Aquino were all put in harm’s way as things got more hectic, it was Dean Miller who succumbed to his injuries. Onaodowan acknowledged his exit from the series in a sweet Twitter exchange with Shonda Rhimes after the ep aired.
.@shondarhimes Thank you for taking a chance on me, and giving me the opportunity. Thank you so much. You have changed my life. 🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿 https://t.co/ol2xoTcWczNovember 12, 2021
Okieriete Onaodowan’s gratitude for Shonda Rhimes was reciprocated by the acclaimed television producer, as Rhimes acknowledged the Hamilton actor’s growth since joining Station 19 in 2018 and wished him luck on whatever comes next.
One theme that ran through the last couple of seasons of Station 19 was Miller’s unspoken love for Vic Hughes. In “Things We Lost in the Fire,” their relationship seemed to be coming to a head, raising red flags about what was about to happen to one or both of them. The episode set it up to look like Vic might be the one to die, as she warned her Station 23 boyfriend Theo that celebrating their anniversary would be bad luck.
Then, before the explosion, Vic confronted Miller about moving to Oakland to expand his Crisis One program. Miller said he loved Crisis One and he loved the idea of his daughter Pru traveling the country. He stopped short of saying he loved Vic, but asked her to come with him and Pru. Alas, that won't be happening.
While on the scene, Vic was hit with a live power line that electrocuted her in a freaky fashion, but Miller thankfully saved her life by performing CPR. They exchanged (more than?) friendly “I love you”s before Miller got back to work and was killed in the second explosion. Miller’s death wasn’t fully confirmed until about 15 minutes into the Grey’s Anatomy half of the crossover, “Bottle Up and Explode!” Upon learning about Miller, Vic immediately suffered a heart attack but was revived.
Station 19 will never be the same, both for the firefighters who lost a brother in Dean Miller and for fans who enjoyed Okieriete Onaodowan being part of their Thursday night lineup. Station 19 continues at 8 p.m. Thursday, November 18, on ABC. Check out our 2021 TV Schedule for premieres through the rest of the year.
