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Crime and Trauma Scene Cleanup in Poulsbo, WA

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After a crime, a serious injury or a death by suicide in Poulsbo, the cleanup is done by an independent biohazard cleanup company that the family or property owner hires directly. Work can start only after police, and the Kitsap County Medical Examiner’s Office1 if someone died, have finished and released the scene. Biohazard Network does not do this work; we can connect you with an independent local company so you do not have to search alone.

If you are facing this now, you do not have to handle any of it yourself. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers free, confidential emotional support, including to people worried about a loved one, and you can call, text or chat with a counselor anytime, day or night.

What this cleanup involves

Crime and trauma scene cleanup means removing and disinfecting what is left after an assault, a homicide, a break-in where someone was hurt, a serious accident, or a death by suicide. The point is that the family never has to see or handle any of it. A biohazard is any material, such as blood, that may carry germs able to make people sick. Bloodborne pathogens are germs carried in blood that can cause disease. Household cleaners cannot reach what has soaked into carpet pad, drywall or subflooring, and cleaning without protection puts the person doing it at risk.

What happens first

Police and the medical examiner

Police control the scene of a crime or serious injury until they release it. Scene release means investigators have finished their work and handed the property back to its owner. If someone died, the Kitsap County Medical Examiner’s Office1 may also be involved; a medical examiner is an appointed official, and this office investigates all sudden, unexpected, or unnatural deaths in Kitsap County. Under RCW 68.50.010, jurisdiction over deaths caused by violence, whether self-induced or otherwise, rests with the county coroner or medical examiner. The Kitsap County Medical Examiner’s Office can be reached at 360.731.6843 with questions. Neither police nor the county cleans the property after release; that is left to the owner and the company they hire.

What not to touch

Before release, stay out of the affected area and leave everything where it is. After release, you still do not need to touch anything. Close the door to the room if you can, keep children and pets away, and let the company you hire take it from there.

After a death by suicide

If someone you love died by suicide, please go gently with yourself. Your loved one goes into the care of the funeral home you choose, and the Kitsap County Medical Examiner’s Office1 releases personal property it secured to the funeral home with the body. Its investigators carry a pamphlet for families that answers common questions and lists grief-counseling resources. The office’s family Resource Guide states that it does not endorse or recommend any specific providers, so the choice of cleanup company is yours. The company you hire takes this work off your shoulders; if privacy matters, ask before hiring whether its crew can arrive in unmarked vehicles.

For property managers and employers

After an accident or assault at a rental, an office or a shop, keep tenants, staff and customers away from the area and close it off if you can. After release, ask the company for written records of what was removed, what was disinfected and how the waste left the site. Keep them for insurance.

What to expect from the company you hire

The crew wears protective equipment such as gloves, suits and respirators. Containment comes first: sealing off the work area so contamination does not spread through the building. Porous materials, meaning things that soak up liquid such as carpet, padding, mattresses and some drywall, are removed when they cannot be cleaned. Disinfection, the use of products that kill germs, follows on hard surfaces. Odor remediation, which means dealing with an odor at its cause, comes last, after the source is gone, and has its own page for Poulsbo.

What is removed may include biomedical waste, Washington’s legal term for listed types of waste such as discarded human blood and materials containing free-flowing blood. In Kitsap County, hauling biomedical waste is regulated by the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) and the Kitsap Public Health District (KPHD), and a company needs UTC approval and a KPHD Solid Waste Hauling Permit. A KPHD Site Restoration Hauler permit is not the biomedical waste hauling permit, so ask who will haul the biomedical waste away.

Before you hire anyone, ask how the company follows OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens standard2, 29 CFR 1910.1030, and the ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup, which comes from the IICRC (the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification, a non-profit organization for the inspection, cleaning and restoration industries). You can also look the business up on the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries3 (L&I) tool called Verify a Contractor, Tradesperson or Business3, and the certifications guide explains what each check means.

Insurance and crime victims compensation

Homeowners insurance sometimes covers this work, depending on the policy. The Office of the Insurance Commissioner4 (OIC) says you can ask your agent or insurance company whether a loss is covered without filing a claim. If a crime caused the loss, the OIC says to notify police and keep a copy of the report. You have the right to choose your own contractor for covered repairs. Read paperwork before signing, since the OIC warns that a contractor’s assignment of benefit form could affect your rights.

Usually covered: Homeowner insurance protects your home and belongings from damage caused by specific risks, says the Insurance Commissioner’s page on how home insurance works. Insurance companies can’t deny your claim if a covered loss is due to domestic abuse and you didn’t help cause the loss; if you file a claim for a property loss, you’ll also need to file a police report, says the Commissioner’s page on domestic abuse and insurance.

Usually not covered: A policy may exclude losses caused by intentional or fraudulent acts of anyone it insures, under RCW 48.18.550.

Ask your insurer: “What does my policy cover for cleanup after a crime, a serious injury or a suicide in my home, and do any exclusions apply?” Source: Filing a homeowner insurance claim (Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner)4

Washington’s Crime Victims Compensation Program5, part of L&I5, does not pay for crime scene cleanup; L&I lists it among what the program does not pay for. It may still help with a victim’s medical treatment, mental health treatment, grief counseling, partial wage loss replacement or funeral expenses. To qualify, a person must have been physically injured or mentally traumatized by a gross misdemeanor or felony in Washington, and the crime must have been reported to law enforcement, with cooperation in the investigation. The program calls itself the payer of last resort, meaning it pays only after primary insurance.

Poulsbo details

Code enforcement sits with the Planning and Economic Development Department and the Police Department. For a home, a rental or a Front Street business near American Legion Park, the order is the same: release first, then cleanup.

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.

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What this covers

Unattended death

Unattended death cleanup means cleaning a home after someone died and was not found right away. When someone is found after they have died, RCW 68.50.010 gives the county coroner or medical examiner jurisdiction over the body.

The details, if you want them

OSHA said in a 2007 letter that its Bloodborne Pathogens standard is concerned with exposure to blood no matter how long the blood has been exposed to air. The same letter says there are studies stating that the hepatitis B virus is likely to survive on surfaces for longer than two weeks.

Unattended death cleanup in Poulsbo

Suicide

Suicide cleanup means cleaning the place where someone died by suicide. Grief support: 988 (call or text, free, any time).

The details, if you want them

The 988 line offers live help in English and Spanish, and interpretation in more than 240 languages and dialects, the Department of Health says.

Crime or trauma scene

Crime or trauma scene cleanup means cleaning a home, business or other place after a violent crime, a serious accident or another traumatic event. An industry standard for this work, IICRC S540, sets out the procedures and precautions to follow. It assumes law enforcement or a regulatory agency has already released the scene.

The details, if you want them

OSHA addressed in a 2020 letter how its Bloodborne Pathogens and HAZWOPER (Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response) standards apply to crime and trauma scene cleanup in homes and businesses. Under OSHA’s Bloodborne Pathogens standard2, regulated waste includes liquid or semi-liquid blood, items that would release blood if squeezed, and items caked with dried blood that can release it when handled.

Blood and bodily fluids

Blood and bodily fluid cleanup means cleaning up blood or other body fluids after an injury, an illness or a death. Washington’s workplace rule on blood (WAC 296-823-099) describes treating all human blood and certain body fluids, whoever they came from, as if they carry HIV, hepatitis B and other germs carried in blood.

The details, if you want them

Professionals call this approach universal precautions. Under WAC 296-823-100, the rule applies to employers whose workers have occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM), even if no exposure incident has happened. WAC 296-823-099 defines bloodborne pathogens as germs in human blood that can cause disease, such as HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C.

Blood and bodily fluid cleanup in Poulsbo

Hoarding

Hoarding cleanup means clearing and cleaning a home where belongings have built up over time. The U.S. Fire Administration says belongings that fill a living space until it can no longer be used create fire risks for the people who live there and for firefighters. It advises keeping doorways and windows clear, for escape in a fire and to prevent injuries from falls.

The details, if you want them

A 2012 National Institute of Mental Health science update describes hoarding disorder, then a proposed category in psychiatry’s diagnostic manual (DSM-5), as marked by avoiding decisions about possessions. The U.S. Fire Administration says blocked windows and doors make it hard for firefighters to get into a home to fight a fire and search for the people inside.

Hoarding cleanup in Poulsbo

Sewage

Sewage cleanup means cleaning up after a toilet, drain or sewer line backs up into a home or building. Raw sewage carries bacteria, viruses, parasites and intestinal worms, the EPA says. Washington’s Department of Health says indoor sewage spills need thorough cleaning, started as soon as possible, to protect people, especially small children.

The details, if you want them

The EPA says rugs, curtains, flooring, wallboard and upholstered furniture that come into contact with sewage usually must be replaced.

Sewage and biohazard waste cleanup in Poulsbo

Infectious disease

Infectious disease cleaning means cleaning and disinfecting a home or workplace after an illness that can spread.

The details, if you want them

The EPA defines cleaning as removing dirt and organic matter from surfaces with soap or detergents, and disinfecting as killing viruses and bacteria on surfaces with chemicals. It says to follow the label on EPA-registered disinfectants and to pay attention to the contact time, which is how long the surface must stay wet.

Rodent and animal waste

Rodent and animal waste cleanup means removing droppings, urine and nests left by mice, rats or other animals. Washington’s Department of Health says a person may be exposed to hantavirus by breathing contaminated dust after disturbing or cleaning rodent droppings or nests. The Department of Health’s rodent guidance says not to vacuum or sweep around rodent waste, and that homeowners should consider hiring a professional company for heavily contaminated areas.

The details, if you want them

Because you cannot tell how old a dropping is, the Department of Health says to handle all rodent droppings as if they are infectious. For heavy infestations, the Department of Health’s rodent guidance says to wear respiratory protection, such as a half-mask respirator with a HEPA filter or a powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR).

Sewage and biohazard waste cleanup in Poulsbo

Drug residue

Drug residue is what is left on surfaces where people used illegal drugs. Washington’s Department of Health says testing and cleanup at illegal drug labs and drug storage sites are regulated under state law. See our guide to drug lab cleanup.

The details, if you want them

Under WAC 246-205-091, a contractor may do decontamination, demolition or disposal work at an illegal drug manufacturing or storage site only after getting a certificate from the state health department. The Department of Health says it has no policy on when to test for residue from drug use, and that your local health officer decides whether an area is considered contaminated.

Vehicle cleanup

Vehicle cleanup means cleaning blood or other biohazards inside a car, truck or boat. This can follow an accident, a crime or a death in the vehicle.

Blood and bodily fluid cleanup in Poulsbo

Questions people ask

Who cleans up after a suicide in Poulsbo, WA?

An independent biohazard cleanup company that the family hires directly does this work, not the police or the county. Cleanup starts after police and the Kitsap County Medical Examiner's Office1 have released the home. Before hiring, the family can ask whether they need to be present at all and how the company handles privacy.

When can crime scene cleanup start in Kitsap County?

Cleanup can start once police, and the Kitsap County Medical Examiner's Office1 if someone died, have released the scene. Release means investigators are finished and the property is back in the owner's hands. Until then, stay out of the affected area and do not move anything.

Does the Crime Victims Compensation Program pay for crime scene cleanup in Washington?

No. L&I5 lists crime scene cleanup among what the Crime Victims Compensation Program5 does not pay for. The program may still help a victim with costs such as mental health treatment, grief counseling and funeral expenses, and it pays only after primary insurance.

Does homeowners insurance cover crime scene cleanup in Washington?

It depends on the policy, and homeowners insurance sometimes covers this work. The Office of the Insurance Commissioner4 says you can ask your agent or insurance company whether a loss is covered without filing a claim. If a crime caused the loss, notify police and keep a copy of the report.

Usually covered: Homeowner insurance protects your home and belongings from damage caused by specific risks, says the Insurance Commissioner’s page on how home insurance works. Insurance companies can’t deny your claim if a covered loss is due to domestic abuse and you didn’t help cause the loss; if you file a claim for a property loss, you’ll also need to file a police report, says the Commissioner’s page on domestic abuse and insurance.

Usually not covered: A policy may exclude losses caused by intentional or fraudulent acts of anyone it insures, under RCW 48.18.550.

Ask your insurer: “What does my policy cover for cleanup after a crime, a serious injury or a suicide in my home, and do any exclusions apply?” Source: Filing a homeowner insurance claim (Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner)4

Do police clean up a crime scene in Poulsbo after they leave?

The owner or family hires an independent cleanup company for that work.

Sources

  1. Medical Examiner's Office - home page (opens in a new tab)Kitsap County
  2. 29 CFR 1910.1030 (opens in a new tab)U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration
  3. Verify a Contractor, Tradesperson or Business (opens in a new tab)Washington State Department of Labor & Industries
  4. Filing a homeowner insurance claim (opens in a new tab)Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner
  5. Who Can File and What is Covered (opens in a new tab)Washington State Department of Labor & Industries

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