Frank Whalen

"Two victims. From the same firehouse. Found in the same weird way." "We're looking for a killer."

- Grant Ward and Skye talking about Adam Cross and Frank Whalen.

Frank Whalen was a volunteer firefighter. Whalen became infected with an alien virus and was killed. The strange way in which the virus's victims die caused Phil Coulson and his team to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of Whalen, as well as another victim, Adam Cross.

Biography
whalen volunteered to help in the aftermath of the Battle of New York. He, Adam Cross, and Tony Diaz recovered a Chitauri helmet to keep as a souvenir. Unbeknownst to the trio, the helmet was infected with an alien virus. Several months after the Battle of New York, they decided to polish the helmet, unknowingly becoming infected by the virus. Frank Whalen succumbed to the virus while in his barn. He had locked the barn doors and had a shotgun with him, which Coulson initially supposed was for protection against someone trying to attack Whalen. It is unclear whether Whalen also thought he would be attacked or if he was going to shoot himself to stop the "humming" symptom of the virus. After the virus killed Whalen, it caused his body to float in the air. Fitz uses one of the "dwarves" to cause a static electricity spark which causes Whalen to fall straight into a coffin which had been setup to catch Whalen. Whalen's body is brought on board the bus where Jemma Simmons investigates it. Simmons determines after examining Whalen's brain that he was not killed by a person, but a virus. Simmons' close work with Whalen's body caused Simmons to contract the virus, though Simmons was able to create a cure before it killed her.