Emergency Biohazard Cleanup

What "emergency" means here, honestly

Plenty of companies promise to be at your door within an hour. We don't, because it wouldn't be true every time, and the last thing you need tonight is a promise that falls through.

Here is what is true:

• The phone line takes calls day or night, weekends and holidays.
• On that first call, we'll tell you what we can about timing for your location and situation.
• We'll help you make the space safe and stable while you wait, which is often what matters most in the first hours.
• If we can't get there as soon as you need, we'll say so plainly so you can decide what to do.

What decides how soon work can start

Our guide to how property access affects cleanup covers the access questions in more depth.

What to do in the meantime

These steps keep people safe without anyone handling contaminated material. None of them involve cleaning.

1. Get everyone out of the area

   Move children, pets and anyone not needed away from the affected room. If you can, have them stay elsewhere tonight.

2. Close the door

   Shut the room off if you can do so without stepping in or touching anything affected. Put a note on the door if others might wander in.

3. Limit air movement

   If it's easy, turn off fans pointing at the area. Don't turn heating or cooling off if that would make the rest of the home unsafe for the people staying there.

4. Don't start cleaning

   Bleach, mops and paper towels can spread material deeper into carpet, grout and wood. Leave it for the assessment.

5. Hold onto damaged items

   Don't throw anything out until you've talked to your insurer. They may want photographs or to see items.

6. Write down what you know

   Note who the investigating officer was, any case or report number you were given, and your insurer's claim number if you have one. It speeds things up later.

For the reasoning behind these, see what not to do before an assessment.

What we'll ask on the first call

We keep the first call short. Expect questions like:

• What's the address, and what kind of property is it?
• Have police or the medical examiner released it?
• Which rooms or areas are affected, roughly?
• Is anyone living there or needing to use the space?
• Who can let us in and approve the work?

You don't need to describe what happened in detail. If you're too upset to talk it through, a friend or relative can call for you. Our guide on communicating with a cleanup company has tips for that conversation.

Situations that are urgent, and ones that can wait

Some situations genuinely need attention as soon as possible: contamination in the only bathroom or kitchen of an occupied home, material near a shared air return in an apartment building, a business that cannot open its doors, or a rental where a new tenant is due. Material that sits longer can also seep further into porous surfaces.

Other situations are better done carefully than quickly. If the property is empty and closed up, a day's wait to arrange the right access and approvals is unlikely to change much. If you're in that position, it's fine to take a breath. We'll still answer your questions tonight.

A death discovered after some time is handled through unattended death cleanup, and a business emergency through commercial biohazard cleanup, where we explain how we plan around operations.

Ordering online instead of calling

If you'd rather not talk on the phone, the Order Online page lets you start the process in writing. It takes a $2,000 initial deposit. That deposit is not the final price, which is set by the written scope after assessment, and placing an order doesn't lock in a start time. We'll contact you to confirm timing. You can also use our contact page for questions.

Once we arrive

We start with an assessment and a written scope you approve. Then we contain the area, remove contaminated porous materials, clean hard surfaces and treat them with EPA-registered disinfectants used according to label directions. Waste is packaged and disposed of in line with applicable Tennessee and federal requirements. The job ends with a walk-through, photos and an itemized invoice. Our trauma scene cleanup overview explains each step, and our guide to arranging emergency cleanup in Middle Tennessee goes deeper.

We cover 15 counties from Nashville, including Sumner, Wilson and Maury. See every area we serve.

Questions people ask