Photos shared on social media show Bass at a U.S. Embassy reception in Accra shortly before Los Angeles evacuation orders.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is at the center of controversy after social media photos showed her posing at a cocktail party in Ghana as the Palisades Fire exploded.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was attending a cocktail party in Ghana when the deadly Pacific Palisades wildfire first erupted, according to LA Times. In the newly unearthed photos, the 71-year-old was seen alongside foreign nationals at the US ambassador’s home in Accra.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Tuesday deflected questions about her controversial overseas trip to Ghana as newly unearthed photos show her at a cocktail party in the African country when the first fire in the region began to spread.