In the Latter part of the 1970's, Atascocita was just starting to grow as a community. FM 1960 was still a two lane road, and trees still outnumbered houses. There were few restaurants. There was no Wal-Mart, no McDonalds, no Kroger or HEB Pantry. There was also no local fire department.

The residents of Atascocita relied on the neighboring community of Humble, to provide fire & ambulance services. Recognizing the need for more centrally located emergency response services, a number of forward-thinking Atascocita residents decided that the time had come for Atascocita to form its own volunteer fire department. After submitting all of the proper legal paperwork to the appropriate state and county agencies, these individuals proceeded to raise money from the community to fund this endeavor. Through such fundraising activities as collecting newspapers and aluminum cans for recycling, as well as requesting donations on the monthly water bill, eventually enough money was raised, and the first AVFD fire engine, a 1976 Ford Firefox pumper, was purchased.  The new engine was housed for awhile at the Humble Fire Department's Station 2 on Wilson Road while Atascocita's new station was being constructed on the corner of Farmingham Road and Walden Forest Drive, where it still stands today as Atascocita Fire Station 19. In 1978, the Atascocita Volunteer Fire Department was incorporated in the State of Texas.

In order to keep up with the tremendous growth of our community, the fire department required a more dependable source of income. So, in January of 2001, AVFD campaigned successfully to the residents of the community to approve the creation of Rural Fire Prevention District 46, (now Harris County ESD No. 46) a taxing district, so that the department would have a reliable source of income to keep up with that tremendous growth.  

Through the years the Atascocita Fire Department grew considerably. New fire trucks and ambulances were bought and sold, and a second station, Atascocita Fire Station 2,  was built and placed in service in the Atascocita Forest subdivision. The membership grew and the number of members trained in firefighting techniques, rescue practices, and emergency medical services grew exponentially. Station 1 (now Station 19) has had two major additions to the building, and a new station, Station 29, was built to replace the old Station 2 and stands at the corner of Atascocita Road, and Woodland Hills Drive. In 2008 AVFD placed into service Station 39 which is located off of FM 1960 near Timber Forest Drive. In 2020 a building located at Rustic Timbers Drive and Will Clayton Parkway was purchased and extensively renovated to be to become the Atascocita Fire Department's Fleet Maintenace Facility.  In 2017 the department staffing model transitioned from the Atascocita Volunteer Fire Department, a mostly volunteer department, to the Atascocita Fire Department a "combination" model staffed mostly by paid career firefighters.

Today the Atascocita Fire Department runs over 5,000 calls annually, is a certified ISO Class 1 department and as such ranks among the top 1% of fire departments in the United States.  AFD is an all-hazards emergency services provider delivering service to 25 sq mi of unincorporated Harris County. Bordered by the West Fork of the San Jacinto River to the North, Lake Houston to the East, the City of Humble to the West and the Union Pacific RR tracks to the South, we provide service to over 80k residents via 3 fire stations staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We deliver MICU level EMS and world class fire service via 4 MICU ambulances, 3 fire engines and 1 ladder truck.

The more things change in Atascocita, the more some things stay the same. We are still operating out of our original Station, and yes we even still recycle aluminum cans.