Executive Director

Melissa Wagner founded Disaster Imaging Inc. in 2024. She is one of the pioneers in UAS damage assessments, starting in 2017. She has worked with National Weather Service and Federal Emergency Management Agency to improve assessment of damage. She developed a multidisciplinary research program for the National Severe Storms Laboratory and University of Oklahoma. She has brings extensive experience in the fields of geography (remote sensing, GIS, UAS), severe storm research, and more.

In her career, Melissa has conducted over 43 severe storm events using UAS. She has published more than 20 educational papers, presented research at 40 conferences and participated in public outreach. In 2024, she and her collaborators were nominated for a NOAA Bronze Medal Award.

Melissa’s full CV can be found here.

Pilot

Dustin Jermalowicz joined DII in 2025 as the company’s remote pilot. A certificated FAA Part 107 remote pilot, Dustin has been flying UAS systems since 2017.

Dustin has extensive experience flying fixed-wing UAS platforms as well as standard quadcopters and octocopters with payloads that include thermal imaging, multispectral, and LiDAR systems. His work has taken him across the country, where he trains educators, government employees, and private companies in UAS systems.