Death; It's not a very uplifting or cheerful subject, and yet it's a perfectly normal part of life, affecting us all at various times.
While dealing with any death can be distressing and traumatic, a certain amount of practicality is required. Things need to be planned and organised, and paperwork must be sorted out.
But when an unattended death occurs, there's the added stress of having to clean the site where the body was discovered, and this raises several questions, such as How is this done? Who is responsible? Can I do the job myself? Are there any legal requirements? You may be asking all of these questions and more, and it's essential to know the answers and understand your obligations.
Fortunately, Clean Team Scotland is here to help! Using our expertise as trauma scene cleanup professionals, we'll go through the process and explain everything clearly.
By the end of this blog, you'll have all the information you need regarding unattended death cleanup.
This term covers several different scenarios, usually when a person dies outside of medical care or when nobody else is present to note the actual time of death.
Here's an overview to explain the type of scenario that might qualify as an unattended death:
In all of these cases, the police are usually involved to establish whether it's a crime scene, and a coroner examines the body to decide the cause of death and to see whether a post-mortem is required.
When any biological material is present, such as blood and bodily fluids, unattended death cleaning will be necessary. This is always the case when body decomposition has taken place.
Now let's look at the cleanup process to see what happens...
A biohazard remediation or trauma-cleaning team will be called whenever a dead or decomposing body is discovered and cleanup services are required.
Biohazard remediation refers to the proper cleanup of human blood and body fluids*, along with any biohazardous materials and bloodborne pathogens.
*It's also used in the event of a communicable disease outbreak
Work doesn't begin until the emergency services have finished removing any human remains and the police have recovered potential evidence.
Once the site is declared open, the cleaning team will begin the task with a risk assessment to establish any hazards, including drug paraphernalia such as syringes.
Next, all porous materials contaminated with blood and other bodily fluids are double-bagged and treated as hazardous waste. These are taken to the nearest hazardous waste disposal depot (only licenced carriers can legally do this!).
The next stage involves the thorough decontamination of the affected area using powerful cleaning agents and enzymatic chemicals that break down biological matter, allowing it to be removed completely. It's vital to thoroughly disinfect areas affected by human decomposition due to the potential presence of harmful pathogens, as mentioned above.
These pathogens carry the risk of diseases and viruses, such as hepatitis b, hepatitis c, HIV/AIDS and MRSA, among others, so it's essential to arrange the safe disposal of any biological materials and ensure that the area is properly disinfected.
In addition, professional trauma scene cleaners may use other specialized equipment to make sure every inch of the site is clean, including:
Once all infectious materials have been removed and the affected area has been decontaminated, the team can turn its attention to any repairs or renovation required. Please note that not all biohazard remediation teams handle this side, so it's important to establish this with the company before work proceeds.
In relation to an unattended death in a private dwelling, the aim is to restore the building to a livable condition.
We need to be absolutely clear on this point: responsibility can fall into two areas:
So, let's answer these carefully to leave no room for doubt...
When it comes to paying for cleaning up an unattended death scene, the property owner is responsible in the majority of cases. This can become complicated when unattended deaths occur in abandoned buildings or on public land where boundaries are disputed.
However, if a deceased person is discovered in or on a private property, then the owner must foot the bill for any subsequent cleaning.
As for the cleaning process, it's also up to the property owner to organise a cleanup team.
You'll notice that we didn't say that they need to clean the site themselves! We'll cover this in more detail in the next section, but it's time to make a confession here; the title of this blog is misleading as it hints at the possibility that you can tackle this job yourself.
Let's make things crystal clear - unattended death scenes must be cleaned by a specialist bioremediation company or a professional team of trauma scene cleaners only.
To drive this point home, we'll move on to the next question.
For more details, check out our post "Who cleans up after a death".
The answer to this is a clear no, in 99.9% of cases.
It all depends on the condition of the site and whether any blood and body fluids are present, as these can harbour viruses and other potentially harmful pathogens.
You may be inclined to attempt the task yourself, and this isn't an uncommon situation, especially in cases where family members are involved. However, traditional home cleaning solutions just aren't enough to clean the affected areas properly!
You also need to properly dispose of contaminated waste and safely clean porous materials if they aren't being discarded. Porous material is notoriously difficult to clean, especially when contaminated with bodily fluids. Even a tiny amount of biological material left untreated can cause health problems or lingering odours, so you will almost always be obliged to contact a company that offers biohazard cleanup services.
In a small number of cases, you may be advised to go ahead and use standard cleaning methods, but these are rare.
This eventuality is distressing but, sadly, happens on a fairly regular basis, so it's worth keeping in mind what action you need to take.
Now, the circumstances and scenarios vary widely, but the emotional toll is often the same, particularly if it involves the unexpected loss of a family member. In such situations, it's essential to try to remain as calm as possible.
Here's a quick guide to help you focus on what you need to do:
