If a death in Everett went unnoticed for days, decomposition can reach flooring and walls, which is why a trained company does this work. After an unattended death in Everett, the cleanup is done by an independent biohazard cleanup company that the family or property owner hires directly, once the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office1 and any police involved have released the home. An unattended death means a person died alone and was not found right away. Biohazard Network connects you with an independent local company; it does not clean and does not do or supervise the work.
If you are reading this after losing someone, or after a call about a tenant, we are sorry. You are not expected to clean the home yourself. This page explains what comes first, what the company you hire should do, and what can make the work take longer.
Why ordinary cleaning is not enough
When someone is not found right away, body fluids can move into carpet, padding, mattresses and the floor beneath. These are porous materials, meaning materials with tiny openings that let liquid soak in, so surface cleaning cannot reach them. The fluids can also carry bloodborne pathogens, which are germs in blood and some body fluids that can cause disease. Professional cleanup removes the source, protecting the health of whoever lives there next and the future of the home.
What happens first
The medical examiner and the funeral home
In Snohomish County, deaths are investigated by the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office1. A medical examiner is a public official whose office investigates deaths; this office determines the cause and manner of death of people who die suddenly, violently or unexpectedly while in apparent good health. Under Washington law2, a body found dead falls under the county coroner or medical examiner and may be moved to the morgue, so the family does not handle the person’s remains. Investigators can be reached at 425-438-6200 and are on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The office’s Information Guide for Families answers questions about next steps, and its website has information on local funeral homes, crematoriums and bereavement support. Contacting a funeral home comes before any cleanup decision. The office also keeps a Biohazard Cleanup Services list, which it says is for convenience only, is not comprehensive, and is not an endorsement. Because it does not take responsibility for any listed company’s work, ask every company the questions below.
Scene release and what not to touch
Scene release means police or the medical examiner have finished and returned control of the home to you. Until then, do not move items or start cleaning. Afterward, keep people and pets out of the affected room, close the door, and do not try to remove carpet or furniture yourself.
What to expect from the company you hire
The crew should wear protective equipment and set up containment, which means sealing off the work area so contamination does not spread. Affected porous materials are cut out and bagged, and hard surfaces are cleaned and then disinfected; disinfection means using products that kill germs. Odor work comes only after the source is gone, and odor remediation in Everett explains that step.
Some removed material is biomedical waste, a legal category that under Washington’s definition includes discarded human blood and materials containing free-flowing blood. A company that hauls solid waste for pay needs a certificate of public convenience and necessity from the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, and a company collecting biomedical waste must keep an operating plan that holds it separate from other waste. Ask who will haul the bagged materials and whether that hauler holds the certificate. Ask, too, for written records of the work, such as photos and a list of what was removed, to share with your insurer.
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 works3. For damage from those risks, dwelling coverage typically covers repairing or replacing your damaged home.
Usually not covered: Standard homeowner and renter policies exclude wear and tear: insurance covers sudden accidents, not ongoing issues, says the Insurance Commissioner’s smoke damage page, which lists what standard policies exclude4.
Ask your insurer: “Without filing a claim yet, can you tell me if my policy covers cleanup and repairs after a death in my home, and what limits apply?” Source: Filing a homeowner insurance claim (Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner)5
Before you hire, ask the company how its work follows OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens standard, 29 CFR 1910.1030, and the ANSI/IICRC S540 Standard for Trauma and Crime Scene Cleanup, published by the IICRC, a non-profit organization for the inspection, cleaning and restoration industries. You can look up the business yourself with the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) tool, Verify a Contractor, Tradesperson or Business, and the certifications guide explains what each of these means.
How long it takes, and what makes it longer
No one can give an honest time before seeing the home, so ask the company to explain its plan after an inspection. These things change the length of the work:
- Time before the person was found. More time can mean fluids reached more materials.
- Porous materials. Carpet, padding, mattresses and upholstered furniture that absorbed fluids are removed rather than cleaned.
- Flooring and subfloor. If fluids reached the subfloor, the layer of board under the finished floor, sections may need to be cut out.
- Odor work. It starts only after the source is removed, so it is a later step.
- Rebuilding. Replacing floors or drywall is a separate project. Everett is a first-class charter city, and its Permit Services (City of Everett Public Works) processes all required permits for construction in the city, so ask whether your repairs need one. How biohazard cleanup fits with restoration covers this handoff.
- Insurance. The Office of the Insurance Commissioner5 says you can ask your agent or company whether a loss is covered without filing a claim, and that the insurer has 30 days from the date a claim is filed to inspect the damage.
If you manage the rental
If the tenant lived alone, follow Washington’s death-of-a-tenant law, RCW 59.18.595, before any belongings leave the unit. On learning of the death, the landlord must promptly mail or hand-deliver a written notice to any known personal representative, any known designated person, and the emergency contact on the rental application. Sending it early gives the family time to make decisions while cleanup is planned. The notice states that the tenancy ends 15 days after it is sent or on the date rent is paid through, whichever is later.
You may enter right away and dispose of perishable food, hazardous materials and garbage, but the tenant’s other belongings follow separate steps. They go to a tenant representative who asks in writing, and that person gives you an inventory and a signed acknowledgment of possession, not ownership. Tell the cleanup company which items are affected materials to remove and which belongings must be set aside for the family. If no one comes forward in time, a second written notice with a date at least 45 days out is required before you sell or dispose of property, and personal papers and personal photographs are excluded.
Help in Everett and Snohomish County
If you find medications while sorting belongings, the Snohomish County Health Department lists a Medicine Disposal program, along with Garbage & Waste and Hazardous Waste programs; its Everett main office number is 425-339-5200. If the company you choose is coming from across the Snohomish River, ask how it plans its arrival: the US 2 trestle is the only direct highway route across the river to I-5, traffic and back-ups on and near it have increased, and it has no carpool or transit lanes. For more, see Biohazard and Trauma Cleanup in Everett, WA and Biohazard and Trauma Cleanup in Snohomish 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.
- Snohomish County Medical Examiner (opens in a new tab)After a sudden or unexpected death, cleanup waits until this office is done.
- Snohomish County Health Department (opens in a new tab)For local health questions, such as a home that was used as a drug lab.
- 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.