Eight fire engines were called to a basement fire at a terraced house on Evering Road in Hackney.
Fifty-eight firefighters and officers tackled the blaze which gutted the basement, the ground floor and the staircase between the two floors. The fire also damaged half of the first floor, and part of the roof of the property.
No injuries were reported and fortunately three people left the house before the Brigade arrived.
Station Manager Sanjay Prasad was at the scene, he said: "This was a severe fire in the basement. The first fire crews in attendance worked hard to contain the fire. They successfully managed to contain it so that the neighbouring property was protected."
Fire crews from Stoke Newington, Homerton, Tottenham, Leyton and Islington fire stations attended the incident.
The Brigade was called at 1632 and the incident was over by 2007.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.