A garden shed was destroyed by a fire behind a row of terraced houses on Seton Gardens in Dagenham this morning.
The fire spread to the rear of three houses, which were slightly damaged by the blaze.
Ten people left the buildings before the Brigade arrived and no one was injured.
Four fire engines, 21 firefighters and officers from Dagenham, Barking and East Ham fire stations attended the incident.
The Brigade was called at 0651 and the fire was brought under control at 0815.
The cause of the fire is being investigated.