See this article, US states' drones inspect bridges, help predict avalanches.
I think your challenge as emergency managers is integrating drone usage and the data they obtain into your operations. We immediately think about disaster response and recovery, but I can easily see uses for disaster mitigation. Really, "the sky is the limit" when you think about the integration of drones into emergency management.
Yes, there are evil purposes that drones can also be used for. Assassinations, terrorism, bank robberies, interference in firefighting, intrusions into restricted military facilities, etc. etc. As I've said before, think of all the criminal uses that automobiles are used for — yet we don't refuse to use them ourselves for all the positive aspects they bring to our programs and to society.
Claire Rubin, Senior Researcher, shared the link above.
