A sewage backup, a failed septic system, used needles or a buildup of rodent droppings in a Port Orchard home, rental or business is cleaned up by a private biohazard cleanup company that the owner or property manager hires directly. The first step is to keep people and pets away from the affected area and, for a septic failure or an outdoor spill, to contact the Kitsap Public Health District1. Biohazard Network can connect you with an independent local company; it does not do the cleanup.
Finding sewage in a unit you manage, or needles left in a vacant house, is upsetting. This page explains what the work involves, what to ask the company you hire, and how contaminated waste must leave the property.
What this cleanup involves
A biohazard is biological material, such as sewage or animal droppings, that can carry germs that make people sick. Sewage soaks into porous materials, meaning materials that absorb liquid, such as carpet, padding, drywall and upholstered furniture, and wiping the surface does not reach what has soaked in. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) says to hire a cleaning professional if a moldy area has been contaminated by sewage. DOH also says water-damaged carpets, bedding and upholstered furniture should be cleaned and dried within 24 to 48 hours or considered for replacement, which is the plain reason sooner is better.
Needles and other sharps
Sharps are items that can puncture skin. Biomedical waste is the legal term for certain medical-type waste, and Washington limits it to the types listed in RCW 70A.228.010, which include sharps waste: hypodermic needles, syringes or IV tubing with needles attached, scalpel blades, and lancets removed from their sterile package. Do not pick up needles by hand or put them in household trash. The Kitsap Public Health District1 offers guidance called Safely Handling Sharps.
Rodent droppings
DOH2 says infected deer mice can shed hantavirus in urine, saliva and droppings, and that people can be exposed by breathing dust after disturbing or cleaning droppings or nests. Because a dropping’s age cannot be told, DOH says to treat every one as infectious and not to sweep or vacuum. For heavy droppings in a garage, attic or vacant unit, a cleanup company can do the work in full protective gear.
What to do first
A sewage backup or rodent problem is not a police matter, so there is no scene release, meaning the point when police or the medical examiner (the county office that investigates certain deaths) hands a property back, to wait for. If someone has died in the home, the Kitsap County Medical Examiner’s Office investigates all sudden, unexpected, or unnatural deaths in Kitsap County; see Unattended Death Cleanup in Port Orchard, WA.
Until a company arrives:
- Keep children, pets and tenants out of the affected area.
- Do not sweep, vacuum or handle needles.
- Take photos and keep damaged belongings for now. The Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) tells renters the insurer may want to inspect them.
- Ask your insurer early. The OIC3 says you can ask whether a loss is covered without filing a claim, and that most homeowner policies don’t cover gradual leaks.
Usually covered: If your home is on a sewer system, sewer backup coverage can be added to a home policy as an optional endorsement, says the Insurance Commissioner’s flood insurance page4.
Usually not covered: A standard home policy does not cover sewer backup, but it can be added as an optional endorsement, says the Insurance Commissioner’s flood insurance page4. If you rent, your landlord’s or property management company’s policy covers the building but not your belongings, says the Commissioner’s renter insurance page.
Ask your insurer: “Does my policy include a sewer backup endorsement, and does it cover this backup?” Source: Learn how home insurance works (Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner)
For a septic failure, the Kitsap Public Health District1’s Drinking Water & Onsite Sewage program applies, and the district’s rules for these systems are titled Ordinance 2025-01: Onsite Sewage System and General Sewage Sanitation Regulations. For sewage spilled outdoors, the district lists its Water Pollution Identification & Correction program. You can reach the Kitsap Public Health District at 360-728-2235.
What to expect from the company you hire
Cleanup workers wear protective equipment such as gloves, eye protection and breathing protection. Ask the company to walk you through each part of the job:
- Containment: sealing off the work area, for example with plastic sheeting, so contamination does not spread.
- Removal: taking out porous materials that cannot be made safe.
- Disinfection: applying products that kill germs on the surfaces that remain.
- Odor work once the source is gone; see Odor Remediation in Port Orchard, WA.
- Records: photos, a written scope and an itemized invoice for your insurer. Ask for these in writing.
Sewage cleanup overlaps with water damage restoration, and drying and repairs can follow once the biohazard is removed; How Biohazard Cleanup Fits With Water, Fire and Mold Restoration explains the hand-off. If blood is involved instead, see Blood and Bodily Fluid Cleanup in Port Orchard, WA.
Before you hire, ask the company how its work follows OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens standard, 29 CFR 1910.1030 (bloodborne pathogens are germs carried in blood), and the ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup from the IICRC, a non-profit organization for the inspection, cleaning and restoration industries. Then look the business up yourself with the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) tool called Verify a Contractor, Tradesperson or Business, and read Biohazard Cleanup Certifications Explained to understand what you find.
The process, and how waste leaves the property
- Plan. The company inspects the area and explains what must be removed and what can be cleaned.
- Setup and removal. Containment goes up, workers put on protective gear, and affected materials are bagged on site.
- Keeping biomedical waste separate. Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission5 (UTC) rules require a company that collects, transports and disposes of biomedical waste to keep an operating plan that holds that waste apart from other solid waste until treatment or disposal.
- Hauling. In Kitsap County, hauling biohazardous or biomedical waste is regulated by the UTC5 and the Kitsap Public Health District1 (KPHD), and a company needs UTC approval and a KPHD Solid Waste Hauling Permit. KPHD publishes a list called Permitted Solid Waste Companies in Kitsap County | 2026. A company hauling site waste away in its own equipment needs a separate KPHD Site Restoration Hauler permit, which is not the biomedical waste hauling permit. Ask who will haul each kind of waste.
- Final check. Remaining surfaces are disinfected and the area is confirmed clean before repairs begin.
A former drug lab is a separate job in Washington: clandestine drug lab decontamination workers, supervisors and contractors must be certified through DOH’s Drug Lab Cleanup Program.
Sewage and biohazard cleanup in Port Orchard
Port Orchard is an incorporated city. Its Department of Community Development is responsible for land use planning, permitting administration, building and fire permits, and code enforcement, so it is the office to ask about permits for repairs after cleanup or about a code complaint on a property in the city.
Kitsap County’s road links include the Hood Canal Bridge, a floating bridge over saltwater, and the Agate Pass Bridge on SR 305, Bainbridge Island’s road link to the Kitsap Peninsula. When you contact a company, ask where its crew is based and how it will reach the property. More local information is on Biohazard and Trauma Cleanup in Port Orchard, WA and Biohazard and Trauma Cleanup in Kitsap County.
Who to call first
In an emergency, call 911.These official offices may be part of the first steps. They are government pages, not ours.
- Kitsap County Medical Examiner (opens in a new tab)After a sudden or unexpected death, cleanup waits until this office is done.
- Kitsap Public Health District (opens in a new tab)For local health questions, such as a home that was used as a drug lab.
- Kitsap Public Health: permitted waste haulers (opens in a new tab)Cleanup companies that haul away waste here need this permit.
- Washington Crime Victims Compensation Program (L&I) (opens in a new tab)If a crime happened, it may help with some costs, such as funeral expenses. It doesn't pay for cleanup.
- Verify a contractor (L&I lookup) (opens in a new tab)Look up whether a company is a registered contractor before work starts.
- Washington State Department of Health (opens in a new tab)State health rules, such as for drug lab cleanup and hantavirus.