Story Of a Crime Scene Cleaner
There was
a news in BBC about a man who cleans up blood after murders. That news makes us
learn to the people who are belonging to crime
scene cleaning.
Mexico has one of the highest
murder rates in the world, but who cleans up the blood at the crime scene when
the police and investigators have left? Donovan Tavera is Mexico's first
forensic cleaner. As he explains here,
his fascination with blood began as a young boy.
What happens to the blood after a murder? The question haunted
me for years, until I answered it myself.
The first time I saw a dead body
was when I was 12 years old. Early one morning we heard that somebody had died
on the street outside our block of flats. We went out to look. There were clear
signs of violence. The man didn't have a shirt. I was struck by the streams of
blood going down the street. But I didn't feel scared - I was just very
curious. And that's how my fascination with blood began.
As well as us bystanders there
were police officers and investigators. I kept waiting for someone to come and
clean up the blood, but no-one came. Some of the blood even ran towards our
building and my mother washed it away with water.
I asked her: "Who cleans the
blood after a murder?" I asked her so many questions that day.
When my father came home from
work I asked him too: "What happens to the blood after a murder? How do
you clean it up?" I kept asking about it for days, until he said,
"Please stop talking about this. Enough!"
That was when I decided to find
out for myself. I went to the library and took out a book on medicine, but that
was too general. Then I found a book about forensic medicine. I read about the
process of death and what happens to a corpse. I learned a lot.
A murder isn't the same as an
accident - in a murder there is a lot of blood. And blood can carry diseases.
It seemed to me that if someone takes bodies from the street, there should also be a professional who
cleans up the blood.
When I was about 17 I started
experimenting. I went to the butcher and bought cow's liver and bones and then
at home I would investigate how to clean up the blood.
And that's how I became a
forensic cleaner.
Over the years I have invented
more than 300 different formulas to clean up blood. Some I have perfected over
the years. Others haven't changed since I first used them.
You need different methods
depending on what you are cleaning - whether it's the carpet of a car, for
instance, or personal objects like watches or rings. It also depends on how and
when the person died. For instance, someone may have been lying dead in the
bathroom of their house for a week, in a humid environment. In another
situation, perhaps where a man has hung himself with his own tie, you need to
consider other bodily fluids such as semen or feces.
Before
I come I ask what happened, and where the corpse is. I also need to know if the
dead person was ill, and if there is a chance of contamination. That way I can
plan ahead.
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Reference BBC News
Find out more
·
Listen
to Donovan Tavera speaking to Outlook on the BBC World
Service
I am the last person to visit the
scene of the crime. I come after the police officers have left, and after the
funeral has taken place. I am the last person associated with what happened,
and often the dead person's family use me as a bit of a therapist. In the
beginning I used to get personally affected, but now I listen politely and then
get on with my work.
I usually work with my headphones
on because music helps me concentrate. I always listen to the same three
things: Tristan und Isolde by Wagner, 666 Number of the Beast by Iron Maiden
and Paranoid by Black Sabbath. The opera relaxes me, it helps me concentrate
and prepare mentally. But once I put my uniform on and start cleaning, I want
to listen to heavy metal.
My work can only begin once the
authorities have issued a legal statement saying someone outside the police
investigation is allowed on the scene of the crime. Without that piece of paper,
I can't do my job.
A few times people have called me
to do a job, but when I asked them for those legal documents, they didn't have
them. Instead, they offered me money - good money. When I told them I couldn't
work without the proper authorization, they quickly hung up. They may have been
criminals, or perhaps it was a joke, I don't know.
The people who hire me are going
through a very painful situation. From the moment the dead body is found until
I have finished, they have to live with the blood - on the floor, on the walls,
in the bathroom. And it smells. So when the house is clean and the smell has
gone, their mood changes. Often, they cry with relief - a burden has been
lifted. They no longer have to live with that shocking scene. It still hurts,
but it's one less burden to carry.
The worst crime I've had to clean
up was a multiple homicide in Mexico City where four people died. They were
stabbed and the traces I saw showed signs of self-defense and panic. There was
a lot of anger and desperation at that scene. It took us more than 10 hours to
clean it - we had to hand over the house on the same day. My client was
devastated, but in the end we gave back a place without a single trace of what
had happened. My work had helped in some way and afterwards the person thanked
me in a very nice way. There was a totally different atmosphere - it felt
light, as if what had happened had happened a long time ago, like a distant
memory.
I never thought this would be how
I earn my living. I didn't even know this profession existed until I taught
myself how to do it.
Proper crime scene cleanup
takes place as soon as possible after the police finish their investigation of
the scene. If residue and fluids are neglected, the building itself can sustain
further damage. Bodily fluids absorb into wood, drywall, and carpeting. If not
cleaned up promptly, blood can even absorb into the subfloor, where it can
remain hidden, allowing toxic black mold to proliferate. With professional cleaning, these hazards can
be easily be avoided.
Useful Links:
·
EPA
·
OSHA
·
CDC.Gov
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