On February 13, 1971, two Chicago Fire Department firefighters were killed in the line of duty while operating at a fire on N. Elston Avenue. Lieutenant William Quinn and Firefighter Martin Dyer, both of the 2nd Battalion, were fighting a fire inside the building housing A. A. Englebart, Inc., a heating control and appliance dealer, when an explosion erupted and the one-story building collapsed. Five other firefighters and four civilians were injured in the explosion and collapse.

He is survived by his wife and seven children.