Anyone in the greater area work in crime scene/biohazard cleanup? Questions before I make the jump (culture, safety, burnout, and starting at 35)

I’m considering a career change into crime scene/trauma/biohazard cleanup (companies like PuroClean, Aftermath, Remnant, BluSky, Valor, as I’m mostly looking at the Everett/Bothell/Redmond area). My background is in preclinical lab research and bioarchaeology with some forensic fieldwork, so I’ve experience with biohazard protocols and have handled human remains before. However, I’ve never done this particular caliber of work, and I can’t find much honest firsthand info online.

If you do this work (or used to), I’d genuinely appreciate real answers to any of these:

1. Culture – what is it actually like day to day at your company? Does it match the careers page ad you responded to? Given the wide birth of backgrounds this job likely attracts, how’s the camaraderie?
2. Work/life balance – I’ve seen reviews all over the map on this: some places describe hours as totally sporadic/not guaranteed even though you’re on-call constantly (how do manage this lol), while others describe a more structured rotating on-call schedule with a predictable base. Which is it where you work, and does it actually hold up in practice?
3. How traumatic is this work? Is it the big/gory stuff that gets to people, or something else you didn’t expect, like a child’s backpack or an uneaten meal?
4. Support – does your employer offer any real mental health support (EAP, debriefing after bad calls, anything), or are you mostly on your own to process it? Either way, how do you cope?
5. Do you work solo or always with a partner/team? Does that vary by company or job type?
6. Is it ever dangerous? Curious about real incidents, not just the textbook OSHA hazard list. I assume sharps will make a mention here.
7. What surprised you most about the job once you actually started?
8. How long do people usually last? Is this a career people build a long-term life around, or more of a burn-bright-and-leave situation?
9. Starting at 35 – am I setting myself up for a repetitive strain injury, or is that overblown if I go in reasonably fit? I use to dig graves, so I’m primed for unique labor, but I’m still going in blind here.

Any insight be it good, bad, or “here’s what nobody tells you” is appreciated. Trying to go in with clear eyes rather than just the recruiting-page version. Thanks everyone!