Hickman County, TN Biohazard Cleanup Coverage

One town, a lot of county

Centerville sits near the middle of the county on the Duck River. Beyond it, communities like Bon Aqua, Lyles, Nunnelly and Only are unincorporated, and so are the farms, hollows and river bottoms along the Duck and Piney rivers. Census figures show about 26,200 people across 612 square miles, so homes are spread out.

Because nearly every address outside Centerville is rural, we treat almost every Hickman County job as a rural job when we plan it.

The sheriff's office covers most of the county

Outside Centerville, the Hickman County Sheriff's Office is generally the law enforcement agency that responds to incidents. With so much of the county unincorporated, that covers most addresses. If a death was sudden, unexplained or possibly an overdose, the county medical examiner is also involved. The property needs to be released before cleanup begins. If you're not sure, ask the deputy or investigator handling the case.

Planning a job on rural property

1. Describe the access

   Tell us about the drive, gates, bridges or creek crossings, and where a vehicle can park and turn around.

2. Tell us about utilities

   Most homes outside Centerville use wells and septic. That affects how we plan wastewater handling.

3. Mention every affected space

   Houses, manufactured homes, cabins, shops and barns all respond differently. Bare wood and concrete absorb more than sealed surfaces.

4. Send photos if you can

   A few non-graphic photos of the building and driveway help us bring the right equipment on the first trip.

Homes and what they're built from

The median owner-occupied home value in Hickman County was about $224,100 in Census estimates for 2020 to 2024, and roughly 79 percent of homes are owner-occupied. Housing ranges from older farmhouses with crawl spaces to manufactured homes and small cabins. Materials decide the scope. Particleboard floors in many manufactured homes absorb fluids quickly. Plank floors in older houses can let fluid reach the joists below. We check before we cut and explain the reason for each removal.

For more on these decisions, see our guide on whether materials can be remediated and our page on contaminated furniture assessment.

What brings people to call us

In a rural county, the most common reason is a death at home that wasn't discovered right away, often an older resident living alone. Other calls follow serious injuries at home, accidents in a workshop or barn, or a violent incident. Whatever happened, the process is the same: confirm the release, call, assess and get a written scope before work begins. See unattended death cleanup or serious injury cleanup for more on each.

Jobs inside Centerville

Centerville itself has a courthouse square, older houses on small lots, some apartments and rental homes, and businesses along the highways. In-town jobs are usually simpler to reach, but they raise other questions. A rental needs the owner's approval. A business may need the space cleaned outside opening hours. An older house may have plaster walls and plank floors that respond differently from modern materials. Inside town limits, the town's own police may be the investigating agency, so check with them about the release.

If you manage rental property, our landlord page explains how we work with owners.

For families handling things from a distance

Many people who call about a Hickman County home live somewhere else now: Nashville, another state, or the other side of the country. They are often juggling a funeral, an estate and a job at the same time. We try to make our part simple. One contact person is enough. We send photos and a written scope by email, explain it by phone, and begin once it's approved. Afterward, you get a record of what was done and what was removed.

Our guide for families covers the decisions most people face in roughly the order they come up, and this guide offers suggestions for what to ask us.

Getting on the schedule

Hickman County is a substantial drive from Nashville, and roads in the west and south of the county add time. We confirm timing with you by phone at (615) 513-5112 rather than promising an arrival time. Neighboring Dickson County and Maury County are covered too, if family property spans more than one county.

Questions people ask