London Fire Brigade (LFB) has expressed its concern over the thousands of people living in the capital in substandard housing.
BBC News reports how this situation has caused the brigade "grave concerns", as people have been paying to live in former warehouses, above car repair garages, on industrial estates and in retail storerooms.
Residents living in these so-called “beds in sheds” have led to firefighters being called out to 36 blazes, while two people have died as a result.
Deputy commissioner of LFB Rita Dexter expressed her concerns that this situation would not be resolved quickly.
"Fundamentally, there are many many people looking for places to live in London and it doesn't seem to me that will diminish in the short term. We are very concerned about what is next in terms of what people will design as places for people to live."
Planning enforcement manager for Brent Council Tim Rolt told BBC News that people living in homes that were in remote places such as on industrial estates and within commercial property was a problem that was only growing in magnitude.
"The people living in these places – factories and industrial units – are often vulnerable and quite a few them don't speak English or speak very broken English. They have difficulty finding work and they are often reliant on their landlords for work."
He revealed how he and his team had issued in excess of 100 enforcement notices as a result of investigations.
One example cited was a man called Carlo, who moved to the capital four years ago.
He lives in north-west London with his two daughters in a cramped room that is above a car repair shop, and pays £433 a month for the privilege. His daughters, aged 18 and 21, sleep in bunkbeds, while there is mould on the walls. The only other piece of furniture in the room is a fridge.
However, this issue of substandard housing is not only an issue for migrant workers.
Erin, aged 24, came to London looking for some form of employment in the television industry. While she initially was able to sleep on a friend's sofa, she was then forced to live on a houseboat on the Thames.
She paid £250 every month to stay in a make-do cabin on an old converted grain barge. There is only electricity for a few hours every day, which is courtesy of a generator. While a camping shower exists, hot water has to come from boiling a kettle.
"[It] basically has a house built on to it made out of scrap wood and metal. Some of the ceilings are even made out of old doors," she said.
Erin added how she struggled with anxiety and depression as a result of this temporary housing situation, but has now managed to move into a small flat.
The landlord of the boat said he had been making the living situation better on the boat, but was happy this form of accommodation could be of use to those who needed somewhere to live but couldn't afford much else.
Ms Dexter said that, while some may call this form of housing ingenuity, LFB described it as a risk.
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