Understanding what happens after CSOs leave the scene can help you do your job better and also help those who need it most: the victims and the people left behind.

80% of victims or their families clean up after a homicide, suicide, trauma, or situations involving decomposing bodies and other biological hazards because they don’t know that professional services are available. In recent years, however, a number of crime scene clean up companies have sprung up. While some companies simply offer cleaning and removal, others offer a complete range of services including property restoration, assistance with insurance claims, and referrals to counselors and other professionals.

Without the proper training, individuals attempting a clean up could contract a serious illness or injury. Professionals, on the other hand, have extensive training in handling and removing these hazards and understand the state and federal regulations governing biohazards and their clean up and removal.

From: What Happens Next? by Dick Warrington in Who Says You Can't Do That?