Pearland cancels Fourth of July event; Friendswood opts for 7 small parades instead of citywide parade

The city of Pearland has canceled its celebration of freedom due to the threat of COVID-19.

“With the evolving mandates and recommendations from the city’s incident management team regarding COVID-19 and using information provided to us by the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and the Texas Department of State Health Services, we made the decision to suspend the event,” Pearland Special Events Coordinator Mychal Mitchell said in a video update on the city’s website.

The city is hoping to shoot of fireworks at a later day when the city is able to come together, Mitchell said in the update.

In Friendswood, the city has canceled its single parade down Friendswood Drive and is instead opting for seven smaller parades throughout the city.

“People can still have their celebrations at their homes, and I think [the city’s] solution of trying to find a way to continue the parade and to celebrate in the community, to be creative, I commend y’all for that,” Friendswood City Council Member Trish Hanks said.

To see which parade will go through your Friendswood neighborhood, please check the city’s website.

In Friendswood and Pearland city limits, shooting off fireworks is illegal. Fireworks are also illegal in Pearland’s extraterritorial jurisdiction. In both Pearland and Friendswood, citizens are allowed to possess and use party poppers and snappers in lieu of fireworks.