La Mesa, August 25, 2025 — A commercial fire broke out Monday afternoon at 8800 Grossmont Boulevard in La Mesa, sending heavy black smoke into the air and forcing construction workers to flee down ladders.
The call came in at 3:06 PM, when witnesses reported smoke coming from the roof of a building under renovation. The site, once home to a Toys “R” Us store, had been vacant for years and was in the process of being retrofitted into a new TJ Maxx retail location.
Firefighters from Heartland Fire & Rescue arrived quickly and found construction materials on the roof burning intensely. La Mesa Police responded to manage traffic and the CHP briefly close lanes on the 8 eastbound due to thick smoke drifted across the freeway. Construction crews working on top of the building were able to escape down ladders on the side of the structure. No injuries were immediately reported.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
