Unattended death
Unattended death cleanup in Charleston
When a person dies alone and is not found for days or weeks, the home needs more than ordinary cleaning. An independent cleanup company can take that on, so the family doesn't have to.
Calls answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
What happens first
The coroner, then the family
In South Carolina, a death that happens when the person was unattended by a physician, or in apparent good health, has to be reported to the county coroner or medical examiner (S.C. Code 17-5-530). The coroner's office investigates, identifies the person and tells the family. After the examination, the body is released to the person lawfully entitled to it for burial (S.C. Code 17-5-570), which is when a funeral home becomes involved.
The home itself is not part of that process. Once the authorities have left, cleaning it falls to the family, the estate or the property owner. This is the point to call.
Why it's different
Why this is not a job for household cleaners
Over time, fluids move from where the person was into the flooring below: carpet and pad, then the subfloor, and sometimes into the framing. Odor travels further, into soft furnishings, walls and the heating and cooling system. Cleaning the visible surface doesn't reach any of that.
A biohazard cleanup company removes what can't be saved, cleans and disinfects what can, and treats the odor at its source. Its workers wear protective equipment because blood and body fluids can carry infections. Federal workplace rules require employers whose workers face that exposure to have a written plan to protect them (OSHA, bloodborne pathogens).
The work
How the cleanup usually goes
- I
Walk-through
The company looks at how far the affected area reaches, including the floor below and the air system.
- II
Belongings
You say what to keep. Items that can be cleaned are set aside; items that can't are listed before they go.
- III
Removal
Affected flooring and other materials are cut out and sealed for disposal.
- IV
Cleaning
Remaining surfaces are cleaned, disinfected and sealed if needed.
- V
Odor
The odor is treated where it starts. The company tells you when the room is ready for repairs.
Price
What the price depends on
This site publishes no prices, because every job is different. The cleanup company prices it after it knows the details. These are the things that move the number:
- How large the affected area is, and how many rooms
- Whether fluids reached carpet pad, subfloor, drywall or framing, which then has to come out
- How much time has passed, and whether the heating or cooling system was running
- How much furniture and how many belongings are affected
- How much sealed waste has to be packed and taken away
- Access: stairs, narrow halls, a crawl space or a vehicle
Questions
Unattended death questions
Will the smell go away?
Odor comes from material that has absorbed fluids. Once that material is removed and the area is cleaned and treated, the odor usually goes with it. Ask the company how it checks this before it leaves.
Do the floors have to come out?
Often the part of the floor directly affected does. How far it goes depends on how long it has been and what the floor is made of. The company should show you before it cuts.
Can we go in to collect belongings first?
Ask the cleanup company before you do. It can bring out documents, photos and keepsakes you name, cleaned where possible, so you don't have to enter the affected room.
Does homeowners insurance cover this?
Some policies do and some don't. Only your insurer can say. Ask your agent before work starts. See who pays.
When you are ready
One call, and someone else takes this on
You don't have to clean this yourself, and you don't have to decide everything today. A short call is enough to ask questions and hear what the work would involve.
Talk to a cleanup company
The line puts you through to an independent biohazard cleanup company working in your ZIP code. Tell them what happened and where. You decide whether to hire them.
Call (843) 555-0162Calls answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
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