S’pore Student, 17, Has Been Cleaning Homes Where People Died Since He Was 14

What were you doing at 14? For Darwisy Rahman, it was putting on full personal protective equipment and helping to clean homes where people had died.

Now 17, and preparing for his O-Levels at Meridian Secondary School, Darwisy spends some of his weekends and free time working alongside his parents as a trauma cleaner.

For the uninitiated, trauma cleaners are called in to clean and disinfect places where someone has died, particularly when blood, bodily fluids or decomposition are involved.

And for Darwisy, it's a family business. His dad, Rahman Razali, founded DDQ Services in 2012, with the company specialising in biohazard cleaning and cleaning homes following deaths.

However, Rahman wasn’t thrilled when Darwisy first asked to help at 14.

"During that point of time, I'm not agreeable to it because I think he's still young, and I don't think he is able to face such a scene," said Rahman in an episode of Mediacorp's Gen Z Crash Course.

What eventually changed his mind was his son's determination. Rahman said Darwisy genuinely wanted to understand trauma cleaning and how the work could help others, so he eventually allowed him to join the team as an assistant.

Darwisy started out as a runner, helping with simpler tasks after the main clean-up was done.

Three years later, his dad says the teenager now leads a team.

According to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), children aged 13 to below 15 may work in certain jobs, subject to restrictions on the type of work and working hours. They are generally not allowed to work more than six hours a day, or for more than three hours continuously without a 30-minute break.

Now, you'd imagine seeing blood would be enough to make most teenagers reconsider their career choice.

"When I first saw it the first time, I was a bit shocked, but I wasn't that scared of the blood. I was more afraid of the cockroaches that might come out of the drain," he recalled.

In the episode, Darwisy is seen preparing to enter a home where someone had died around 13 hours earlier.

Before going in, he suits up in PPE, complete with protective clothing, gloves and a filtered mask to reduce his exposure to contaminated blood, germs and bacteria.

And beneath all that protective gear? It gets seriously warm.

"Usually after a job, [I] tend to sweat a lot more because of the trapped heat and stuffiness," he explained.

When he first told one of his teachers what he did outside school, she didn't quite believe him.

"The first time he brought this up to me was when he was Sec 2, sometime during CCA. Then he told me about this trauma cleaning thing, and I was like, I thought he was kidding," she recalled.

She also wondered whether being exposed to gory scenes at such a young age would traumatise him, but over the years, she said she's seen him cope well.

"I think he coped really well over the years, and I also feel that he matured a lot over the years. I think something that he would learn that is not easily found in a classroom is the appreciation towards life,” she said.

His friends also know what he does too. In fact, one close friend was brave enough to join Darwisy for a disposal job.

He completed it but didn’t return for another round.

"He told me that he thinks he can call it a day and stop working. Just one time, for experience,” Darwisy recalled.

Now, if you're wondering how a 17-year-old juggles secondary school with cleaning death scenes on weekends, Rahman says the work hasn't jeopardised his son's studies.

According to him, Darwisy has received several bursary awards and is also active in Muay Thai.

And when he's not studying, training or working. Darwisy is very much like any other 17-year-old, watching TV, playing games, drawing and training at home to unwind.

Then there are the decisions most teenagers will hopefully never have to make.

Like deciding which belongings from a deceased person's home can be saved and which have to be thrown away.

Anything contaminated may need to be disposed of, but there are certain things Darwisy tries particularly hard to preserve.

"For me, the items I would choose not to throw would be valuables, family photos especially. Even if clients don't ask for photos, right, I'll try my best to save them at least and put it aside. Cos I feel photos are much more valuable in my opinion. So if I can save it, I will try my best to save,” he explained.

For someone who has become accustomed to walking into scenes most adults would struggle to stomach, there are still cases that stay with Darwisy.

And one affected him particularly deeply as it involved someone who had died by suicide.

Darwisy had came across positive notes she'd written to herself as she apparently tried to get better.

Those affected him more deeply than the blood or decomposition.

"Honestly, I was pretty sad because I saw mental notes she was trying to be better. I can feel how the person felt when she wrote all those notes, trying her best to live a great life,” Darwisy recalled.

The experience left him deeply emotional, and Darwisy said he later spoke to his dad about it.

Cleaning the homes of people who have died, many of whom had been living alone, has also changed how Darwisy treats the people in his own life.

He admitted he used to be very shy and soft-spoken.

"But then these cases taught me that I need to be more open, I need to have at least a person to connect with," he said.

Darwisy said the work has also made him more conscious of spending time with his family while he can.

"It's much better to like spend time with them as much as I can before I fully grow into an adult."

If you or someone you know is having difficulties coping, here are some numbers to call:

Samaritans of Singapore: 1800-221-4444

Singapore Association for Mental Health: 1800-283-7019

CHAT @ *SCAPE: (+65) 6493 6500, (+65) 6493 6501

SAF Counselling Hotline: 1800-278-0022