Actress Molly Glynn, best known for her role on NBC’s Chicago Fire, passed away on Saturday after a falling tree struck her while she was biking on a trail near her home in Rogers Park, Ill. The 46-year-old actress was cycling with her husband and fellow actor, Joe Foust, when the two were caught in an afternoon storm. According to Foust, heavy winds caused the tree to become uprooted and fall; he described the incident as “harsh and quick.” Foust says that the police arrived about 20 minutes later to rush Glynn to the hospital where she was later pronounced dead.
According to weather reports, the storms that struck in the area near Glynn’s accident included winds that reached 70 mph, with up to 80 mph a possibility in some areas. Research shows that accidental deaths such as Glynn’s are very rare occurrences, citing that about 25-35 people die each year as a result of a fallen tree or limb. A friend of the family has labeled the incident as a “freak accident” and “a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Although Glynn gained recognition with her reoccurring role as an emergency room doctor on Chicago Fire, she had en extensive career. For years Glynn performed on some of Chicago’s most popular stages, and even met her husband while working at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater in the 1990s. Described as “a beautiful woman” by BJ Jones, artistic director at the Northlight Theater, Glynn’s bright red hair made her a memorable sight and was said to give her an “elegant” appearance whenever she stepped onto the stage. Jones also says that Glynn “had great skill and breadth and scope as an actress.”
David Rice, Director of First Folio theatre, was a close friend of Glynn’s and says that she “was one of the most loving and generous people in the Chicago theater scene.” Rice also acknowledges the range of Glynn’s talent, saying she was “incredibly versatile. She could handle both comedy and the deepest darkest, dramas.
In an effort to raise money for Glynn’s two sons, a trust fund was started in Glynn’s memory, and has already raised $121,000.
(Photo by Jeff Schear/Getty Images)
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