ORLANDO, Fla. -- An estimated 8,000 homeless women and men are living in makeshift camps scattered throughout the woods, cars or other parts of Central Florida, according to a Local 6 investigation.

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PHOTOS: Inside Homeless Camp

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The crisis of homelessness in Central Floridians will be a part of an upcoming report being completed by the Regional Commission on Homelessness.

The problem involves many women, including Sandy, who lives alone in the woods of Central Florida.

"How long have you been living in the woods?" Local 6's Steven Cooper asked.

"Two years, (yes) almost two years," Sandy said.

"I have to think that is pretty dangerous for a single woman," Cooper said.

"It is, I was raped and everything out here," Sandy said. "Yes, I was, back in November."

Sandy's story is typical of the increasing number of women who find themselves homeless -- a woman who is left with nothing after an ended relationship, the report said.

"I have nothing," Sandy said. "I struggle day-to-day to eat and everything else."

Ed Burke, who has a forestry degree and was a longtime substitute teacher, also lives in the woods of Orange County.

"It's like a third world country to me," Burke said.

"Nobody wakes up at the age of 18 and says my career goal is to be a homeless person in a camp off John Young Parkway," Executive Director of the Homeless Services Network Kathy Jackson said.

Jackson said there are more than 140 camps of homeless people in Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties.

"We have one outreach team of three people that is charged with doing outreach and case management for all of those homeless camps," Jackson said.

Cooper reported that not all homeless people in up in the woods. A woman named Kathlyn spent two months sleeping in her car outside of an East Colonial Drive Denny's restaurant while working at Sears.

"My husband, who I was married to, walked off and abandoned his family," Kathlyn said. "He just left us."

Kathlyn recently found out that she had a brain tumor.

She is currently recovering and has found a shelter at the Coalition for the Homeless where she gets job training and case management.

"I truly thank God for this place, Kathlyn said. "(I) truly thank God because if it weren't for them, I would have been on the street. I did think about prostitution."

Later this week, Local 6 will unveil ways the Regional Commission on Homelessness plans to deal with the crisis.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.