Hoarding 101
Compulsive hoarding is a mental disorder that can devastate lives and property. Personal belongings become mixed with garbage and waste until living areas are unsanitary. Rooms become unusable as refuse piles up on tables, countertop, and floors. In the case of animal hoarding, animals may roam about contributing feces and increasing the chance of biohazardous conditions.
A short time ago I took a call from a homeowner who was in an absolute panic.
Apparently the older man and his wife had an investment property in a middle class suburb just outside of Baltimore, Maryland. A couple of years ago they had leased the home to a middle aged woman and her teenage daughter.
Everything had appeared to be normal and rent was never late, so the homeowners settled into a comfortable routine… until they received a phone call of their own from the local authorities who thought it important for them to know that Child Protective Services had removed the daughter from the custody of the mother because of ‘neglect’ and the living conditions inside the home. They were completely caught off guard.
Once we were standing inside what was, at one time, the foyer, I could see why the man and his wife sounded so troubled on the phone. The house was wrecked. The overwhelming smell of trash, stale beer, and cat waste combined with the heat and humidity made the job particularly challenging.
Everywhere I looked filth abound… From the piles of cat feces to the hundreds of beer cans and to the rotting remains of an untold number of meals. One room alone had so much trash in it that it was like the Mt. Everest of garage… The countless take-out food containers and stinky beer cans nearly touched the ceiling! It was a wonder that anyone would willingly live in such horrid conditions, let alone force a child to endure it also.
Compulsive Hoarding Cleanup Can Seem Overwhelming
Advance Bio-Treatment is available 24/7 to provide complete sanitation and site remediation. Our professional clean up team can eliminate bio-hazards and restore kitchens, bathrooms, apartments, or even entire homes back to their original condition.
Everything and anything inside the house was ruined. Nothing could be saved, the noxious odor of the environment was indiscriminate of who or what it clung to and for days after the completion of the job I would drive myself crazy thinking I could still smell it. We had to literally rip up and replace the sub flooring and dry wall in nearly every room but once we had thoroughly cleaned, decontaminated and deodorized the house, I was able to hand the keys back to the overjoyed homeowners with pride.
Last I heard there were no plans to allow the woman back into the home, but she wouldn’t have need for it as she had entered a residential rehabilitation center that specialized in alcohol abuse. In this job, you really have to be able to separate work life and family life otherwise you can drive yourself crazy wondering about the people whose lives we get a momentary glimpse at… but being a father myself, I still can’t help but wonder whatever became of the teenage girl.
If you need scene clean-up and decontamination guidance, have questions about your payment options, which clean up and decon procedures your current insurance policy covers or require our scene cleanup services immediately, don’t hesitate to give Advanced Bio Treatment a call at:800-295-1684
