Fatal fire warning over ‘beds in sheds’

A growing number of people are putting themselves in danger by living in sheds and garages.

The London Fire Brigade warned that there had already been four fatal blazes and 45 resulting in serious injury involving people living in “back garden developments” and other buildings unsuitable for human habitation.

It blamed “unscrupulous landlords” for the “beds in sheds” problem — which has led to 235 fires in the capital over the past three years — as they cash in on often vulnerable people seeking cheap accommodation. Many are thought to be occupied by illegal immigrants.

It also warned that firefighters’ lives were being put at risk and issued an appeal to other Londoners to help prevent tragedies by reporting such dwellings to their local fire station or council. It is thought more than 10,000 sheds and garages are being rented out in London, often without running water, good sanitation, heating or windows. Councillor Crada Onuegbu, chairman of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority’s strategy committee, said: “Beds in sheds, as well as people living in other unsuitable buildings, continue to be a concern. These figures are a stark reminder that properties like these are potentially lethal fire traps.

“People living in them rely on far riskier ways of heating, cooking and lighting but unfortunately fire safety is not a priority for the landlords who illegally rent them out. It’s not only people living in this accommodation whose lives are being put in danger. There’s also an increased risk to our firefighters if they need to carry out life-saving rescues in buildings that are in a state of dereliction.”

There have been fatal blazes in converted garages in Redbridge, Southall and Hanwell, where a 24-year-old man died. Common causes of fires include faulty wiring, gas heaters and the use of electric bar heaters and gas stoves in unsuitable conditions.