The fire department in Pearland was originally organized in 1946 as the Pearland Volunteer Fire Department, a non-profit organization which contracts with the city of Pearland to provide fire suppression, rescue, fire prevention, and public fire education services to the city and surrounding areas. The volunteer firefighters proudly served as the only fire protection service in Pearland for 61 years. In October 2007, the Pearland Fire Department became a combination department to help meet the needs of our quickly growing community. The department now consists of 18 salaried firefighters and approximately 65 volunteers. The paid crews work from 6:00 AM until 6:00 PM responding to all calls including vehicle fires, medical emergencies, and automatic alarms. These crews are supplemented by the volunteers for large incidents such as structure fires, grass fires, and major accidents. The volunteers also handle all of the emergencies that happen between the hours of 6:00 PM until 6:00 AM.

The department serves an area of nearly 75 square miles with a population of approximately 122,400 including the Pearland city limits and extra territorial jurisdiction (ETJ) areas.

The community has an ISO Public Protection Classification rating of 3 which puts Pearland in the top 5% of communities in the nation. The PVFD is looked upon from other area fire departments for its strength and capabilities as a proven leader in the fire service.