London Fire Brigade condemns 'death trap' housing
London Fire Brigade has served prohibition notices on a number of commercial buildings being used as homes in north-west London.
The brigade said homes on an industrial estate in the Alperton area of north-west London were some of the "worst fire risks safety officers have seen".
LFB said 150 people who were found living in six separate buildings had been moved elsewhere.
The prohibition notices stop the building being used as homes.
The brigade has worked with Brent Council and other agencies to find temporary accommodation for the people who had been living in the buildings.
It said it was alerted to the problem following a fire in an office block on Mount Pleasant at the end of October where firefighters rescued six people.
Steve Turek, LFB's assistant Commissioner for Fire Safety Regulation, said: "The complete contempt some landlords appear to have for the safety of those families they are taking money from is incredible.
"These buildings are potential death traps and it's lucky nobody was killed as a result.
"Building owners must understand the responsibilities they have under fire safety law. If we find that people are putting lives at risk by blatantly ignoring them we will have no hesitation in prosecuting ."