Channel 4's Crime Scene Cleaners shines light on hidden world

Daily Record

20 hours ago

Channel 4's latest series Crime Scene Cleaners gives viewers an insight into the dangerous lives of cleaners who head into crime scenes dealing with the aftermath.
This month, Channel 4 offers viewers a rare glimpse into one of the most harrowing yet under-appreciated professions - crime scene cleaning - with the launch of its gripping new series, Crime Scene Cleaners.
Airing at 10pm on Monday 30 June the series invites audience to step behind the scenes of a world rarely seen on screens.
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The 10 part series dives deep into the extraordinary lives of professional crime scene cleaners, the unsung heroes who are on call 24/7 to head to the most horrific crime scenes. With exclusive access to expert teams in both the UK and the US, viewers will witness the the raw reality of a job that takes these specialists to different crimes scenes putting their own lives in danger.
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From cleaning up after murders, drug dens, burglaries and arson attacks, these elite hazmat crews are tasked with restoring homes and business after the most traumatic events imaginable.
Often working under extreme conditions and in dangerous environments, their efforts go far beyond basic cleaning - they help people begin the process of rebuilding their lives.
The series covers locations across the UK, including Kent, Reading, Somerset, Newcastle and Cardigan, as well as US locations in Arizona, Florida, Louisiana, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
The show offers a unique perspective on crime and the aftermath. It also features forensic psychiatrists, detectives and other specialists weighing in to provide insight into both the science and psychology behind the scenes being cleaned.
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Among the cleaning experts featured in the series is Lauren Baker, a trauma cleaning expert based in Kent, with years of experience, she shares just how mentally taxing the role can be: "it's tough when you walk into an unattended death. Especially if you've got a decomposition going on as well. And mentally, it does affect you."
"It takes a strong mind to be able to go in and clean something like that…. We could be walking into a bloodbath. We could be walking into needles everywhere. You can have faeces, you can have bodily fluids, we don't know what we're walking into."
"Don't get me wrong, there's been times when I have sat there and had a little cry. Because I have genuinely felt for that person, and I've put myself in their shoes and it is tough. It is tough and that's what people don't realise. They really don't."
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She continued: "They think we're just a cleaner… we're not just a cleaner, by no means. I do always think about the people that have passed, and it is really sad. You have to leave that at the job. You can't take that home with you. It's got to stay there. Otherwise, my mental health would deteriorate really, really quickly. So, I need to make sure I can protect myself."
Another cleaner who features is Tony Earnshaw who runs a specialist cleaning service in Newcastle and has attended many high-risk crime scenes with his specialist team.
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He states: "We get called to all sorts of crime scenes, whether it be a sudden death, a murder, a stabbing, an assault… It can be quite gory at times, can be quite challenging and it can be dangerous."
In the series, Tony and his team attend a drug den in which over 100 used needles were discovered and cleared, in what he describes as one of the most dangerous and hazardous jobs they carried out.
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Speaking on the scene he says: "We try to use technology to mitigate any of the risks…. We would use drones on occasions where we know there could be a high risk of hazards, so needle sweeps… For somebody to purposely booby trap the property, I was quite shocked and quite upset really because this tenant posed a risk to our staff."
"These types of people, to generalise, have usually had a lot of run-ins with the police, so they'd find it amusing if a person was to stab themselves or infect themselves because they've put these needles on door frames – it certainly would be an intent to endanger life."
Crime Scene Cleaners – starts 10pm, Monday 30 June or stream all episodes on Channel 4.
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