Because blood is potentially pathogenic and is considered a biohazard, handling any amount of blood can be dangerous. Keep in mind that even dried blood can be very dangerous sice certain bloodborne viruses can live for days outside the body and still cause infection. For example, the Hepatitis B virus can live in dried blood for up to a week and Hepatitis C can survive for up to four days.
Any amount of blood waste that is more than a few milliliters must be disposed of in a biohazard bag, and all surfaces that have come into contact with the blood waste must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected.
To protect yourself and those around you, leave these clean-ups to the professionals.
A biohazard is any hazardous biological material, such as those found at crime scenes, trauma scenes, sewage backups, and drug paraphernalia.
Improper treatment can spread contamination and lead to illness or life-threatening conditions.
First, if this is due to a crime or accident, you will need to call 911 and report the situation. Once the initial crime scene or accident has been addressed by the authorities and the ambulance or coroner has removed the body (if there was one), you can start to process what things need to be done to get back to normal. It can be very overwhelming. Give us a call and explain the situation, give us the address, who we will need to communicate with and your insurance information. We can help. We may be able to come right away, however in some cases where there is an investigation in process, we cannot begin cleanup until the scene has been released.
Most standard homeowner's insurance policies do include coverage for biohazard cleanups. However, there can be exceptions, and some policies may offer limited coverages.