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How did Tim Donnelly die? 'Emergency!' star, 77, dies in his New Mexico home

Tim Donnelly is survived by his daughter, Ashley, two grandsons, his sister Kathleen and his brother Dennis

Actor Tim Donnelly from the NBC series 'Emergency!' died on Friday, September 17. He was 77-years-old at the time of his death.

Donnelly's elder brother, Dennis, said that the star died on September 17 because of complications from a surgery at home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. "It is with deep sadness that we announce the sudden passing of our friend, Tim Donnelly, on September 17th," the Los Angeles County Fire Museum said. "Tim, as you know, played Chet Kelly on the show 'Emergency!' among many other roles during his acting career. Tim is survived by his daughter, Ashley, two grandsons, his sister Kathleen and his brother Dennis." In the past few months, there have been several celebrities who have died like, Roger Michell, Bob Moore, Matthew Mindler and Willie Garson.

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Born on September 3, 1944, Donnelly portrayed firefighter Chet Kelly on all six seasons of the 1970s NBC series 'Emergency!' Working out of Station 51 of the Los Angeles County Fire Department, Donnelly was on 122 episodes of the series, which ran from January 1972 until May 1977. His character was known for pulling practical jokes at the firehouse. He has also appeared on the Jack Webb-produced shows 'Dragnet' and 'Adam-12'. Donnelly made his onscreen debut as a teenager in 'Baby Face Nelson' in 1957. He also appeared in 'The Toolbox Murders' and on episodes of 'Hawaii Five-O', 'Project U.F.O.', 'Vega$' and 'The A-Team'. Donnelly is survived by his daughter, Ashley, sister Kathleen, brother Dennis and two grandsons.

As soon as the news of Donnelly's demise came to light, people started talking about it. One person tweeted, "#Emergency was so influential. I remember seeing Donnelly’s Chet Kelly as a little kid. Even shows like #ChicagoFire now copy his persona, including the mustache. #TimDonnelly." Another one said, "Tim Donnelly, who portrayed Chester 'Chet' Kelly on the series "Emergency" passed away at 77. I didn't see this publicized and thought it should be. He worked at soup kitchens, feeding the homeless, which I feel was very noble."

Remembering him, one Twitter user who was a fan of his character Chet on the show wrote, "@cbuehler1969 Dawned on me reading this obit, was Tim Donnelly a relative? I didn't know he was related to Pat O'Malley. Saw you Tweeted a pic of him a while back. Loved him on EMERGENCY!" Another one tweeted, "Happy to see fire stations around the world have their flags at half mast for Tim Donnelly #RIPCHETKELLY"