Paul Werth
Fire Weather Meteorologist, Technical Advisor
Paul retired from federal government service in 2005 after 36 years as a fire weather meteorologist with the National Weather Service (NWS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Paul received his Bachelor of Science degree in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of Washington in 1968. After graduation, he served as a weather forecaster with the United States Air Force in the space program at Cape Kennedy,Florida, working Apollo 14 through 17 and numerous other space launches.
Paul returned to civilian life in 1973 with the National Weather Service (NWS) in Portland, Oregon. He was the Lead Fire Weather Meteorologist at Medford, Oregon from 1975-1982. He moved to Boise, Idaho in 1982 to serve as a NWS Fire Weather Meteorologist at the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC).
In 2000, Paul accepted the Fire Weather Program Manager position at the Northwest Coordination Center (NWCC) in Portland, Oregon, where he was instrumental in developing the Predictive Services Unit.
Paul is an experienced Incident Meteorologist, and has supported numerous wildland and prescribed fires from Oregon to Florida. He served on the South Canyon Fire Investigation Team, analyzing the meteorological events that contributed to the tragic deaths of fourteen firefighters on Colorado's Storm King Mountain in 1994.
In 1997, Paul presented a series of fire weather seminars in China at the invitation of the Peoples’ Republic of China. He participated in the development and instruction of many fire weather-related courses. Publications include articles for the American Meteorological Society, Fire Management Today and Wildfire Magazine.
Fire Investigation:
Report of the South Canyon Fire Accident Investigation Team, August 17, 1994.
Vickie Werth
Owner, Business Manager
Vickie attended Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. After studying for a year at the Universidad de Complutense in Madrid, Spain, she moved to the Pacific Northwest and graduated from Portland State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in secondary education. She then taught with the Medford and Phoenix-Talent school districts southern Oregon.
After moving to Boise, Idaho in 1982, Vickie worked at the Boise Family YMCA for sixteen years. During that time she earned National YMCA Director Certification and served in many capacities, including Office Manager and Assistant to the Director of the Youth and Child Development Branch. She served as director of
the Idaho YMCA Youth Government program for several years under the leadership of two justices of the Idaho Supreme Court.
In 1998 Vickie accepted a development officer position at Albertson College of Idaho. There she researched and wrote grant proposals and worked as part of the development team raising funds for scholarships, equipment and programs from individuals and corporate entities.
Vickie operated a home-based desktop publishing business, providing editing and layout services for other small businesses.
When circumstances took her back to the Washington / Oregon area, she worked several fire seasons at the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center (NWCC) providing staff support for the Operations Center and for Multi-Agency Coordination (MAC) groups. She also volunteered her services taking notes and documenting the proceedings of fire-related groups, committees and conferences.