Biohazard cleanup in Marysville is done by independent local companies that you hire directly. If someone has died or been hurt, the first step is letting police or the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office1 finish their work and release the home, which means they tell you the scene is no longer under their control. Biohazard Network can then connect you with an independent local company; we do not do any cleanup ourselves.
A biohazard is blood, body fluids or other material that may carry germs that cause disease. This page explains who is involved in Marysville, what each kind of cleanup covers, and what to ask before you hire. The company you choose does the work and answers to you.
Who handles what in Marysville
Marysville is an incorporated city, so city offices, not the county, handle permits and code issues inside city limits. That is true whether the property is in Downtown Marysville, which sits next to I-5 and starts at the waterfront on Ebey Slough, or near Gissberg Twin Lakes Park in north Marysville.
Two city offices may matter after a cleanup:
- Building Services (Community Development) reviews and inspects plans and structures for compliance with city code. If walls or floors must come out and be rebuilt, ask whether a permit is needed. All building permit applications go through the city’s Permit Portal.
- The Marysville Police Department’s Code Enforcement Unit administers the chapters of the Marysville Municipal Code that address public health, public nuisance and safety issues. A landlord or property manager facing a code complaint would work with this unit.
Getting a company to the property
Snohomish County stretches from the Cascade Mountains to Puget Sound, so the company you reach may be based some distance away. For a company east of the Snohomish River, the US 2 trestle is the only direct highway route across the river to I-5, and traffic and back-ups on and near it have increased. When you call, ask how the crew plans to reach you and when it can realistically arrive.
When a death happens at home
A medical examiner is a public official who investigates certain deaths. Here, that is the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office1, which determines the cause and manner of death of persons who die suddenly, violently, or unexpectedly while in apparent good health. Washington law, RCW 68.50.010, places jurisdiction over deaths like these with the county coroner or medical examiner, and the person’s remains may be taken to the morgue.
For your family, this means cleanup waits until the office and police are finished. Investigators can be reached at 425-438-6200, and the office publishes an Information Guide for Families about next steps and its role.
The office also keeps a Biohazard Cleanup Services list. It calls the list a convenience, not a complete or endorsed one, and says it does not take responsibility for the quality of any listed company’s work. Treat that list, and any company you find through this site, as a starting point for your own questions.
The county health department
The Snohomish County Health Department2 covers Marysville. Its programs include Nuisance Properties, Garbage & Waste, Hazardous Waste and Drug Contaminated Properties. The Snohomish County Health Department main office in Everett can be reached at 425-339-5200.
Cleanup services in Marysville
Unattended death cleanup
An unattended death is one where a person died alone and was not found right away. Unattended death cleanup covers cleaning and disinfecting the area after the home is released. Disinfection means using products that kill germs on surfaces. Porous materials, meaning things that soak up fluids such as carpet, mattresses and drywall, may need to be removed rather than cleaned.
Crime and trauma scene cleanup
Crime and trauma scene cleanup is for a home or business after a violent event, a serious injury, or after someone died by suicide. If you have lost someone this way, you only need to share what the company needs to plan the work.
Hoarding cleanup
Hoarding cleanup helps when a home has become hard to live in or move through. Hoarding is a recognized condition, and the work should respect the person living in the home and what the person decides to let go. Ask how the company sorts belongings and how it includes your parent or relative in decisions.
Blood and bodily fluid cleanup
Blood and bodily fluid cleanup covers incidents such as an injury at home or in a rental unit. Bloodborne pathogens are germs carried in blood that can cause disease, which is why cleanup workers wear protective equipment.
Odor removal
Odor removal means finding and removing the source of a problem instead of covering it up. Odor removal deals with odors that linger after a death, a hoarding cleanup or a sewage backup. Ask what the company will do if an odor remains after the first treatment. If water, fire or mold damage is also involved, see how biohazard cleanup fits with restoration.
Sewage and biohazard waste
Sewage and biohazard waste cleanup covers indoor sewage backups and items like needles. Sharps are objects that can puncture skin; Washington’s biomedical waste law lists needles, syringes, scalpel blades and lancets taken out of their sterile packaging as sharps waste. State rules require a company that collects, transports and disposes of biomedical waste to keep a biomedical waste operating plan, so ask who will haul it away. The Snohomish County Health Department2 does not investigate indoor sewage spills, but it offers Guidelines for Cleaning Indoor Sewage Spills.
Before you hire
It is reasonable to call sooner rather than later, because materials left untreated can become harder to clean. If you have homeowners or renters insurance, call your insurer, since policies sometimes cover this work, and ask the company how it handles billing.
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. Personal property coverage includes your furnishings and personal items, such as your TV, clothing and dishes, the same page says.
Usually not covered: Exclusions in home contracts may include certain events, such as flood or earthquake, says the Insurance Commissioner’s insurance glossary4. Standard homeowner policies also do not cover sewer or drain backups, says the Commissioner’s page on being underinsured5.
Ask your insurer: “Without filing a claim yet, can you tell me if my policy covers biohazard cleanup in my home, and what limits apply?” Source: Filing a homeowner insurance claim (Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner)
Ask any company you speak with 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, a voluntary standard from the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), a non-profit for the cleaning and restoration industries. You can also look the business up yourself with the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) tool called Verify a Contractor, Tradesperson or Business, and our guide to what these standards and records mean walks through it.
If the property is outside Marysville, see the Snohomish County page or the pages for Everett and Lynnwood.