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Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass exchanged text messages early in the Palisade Fire, showing that he had trouble communicating with staff when he returned from a trip to Ghana.
The message released by the mayor’s office in response to requests for California’s public records laws will help explain how the city’s fire response was remotely managed while on several flights after attending the inauguration of Ghana’s new president.
At 11:20pm on January 7th, the mayor texted the team after failing to connect in a conference call with the city’s department’s general manager. The Palisade fire began several hours ago around 10:30am and was incited by strong Santa Ana wind power to become the third most destructive wildfire recorded in California
“I’m listening. I don’t know why you can’t hear me,” Bass sent a message.
In response, one of her staff said they could not hear her at their end.
By Tuesday night, the wildfire had grown to at least 2,900 acres when the bus struggled to talk to her team on the phone, and dangerous winds quickly spread the flames.
She was then finally able to make a call when the mayor boarded a military plane to cross the Atlantic.
“If you see a strange number, it’s me,” Bass texted.
On January 8th, the mayor asked LAUSD Coach Alberto Carvalho about the damage to the school that is still passing, and learned from Carvalho that two Palisade schools appear to have been lost.
“OMG Yes, let’s connect when I return to town. We’ll arrive soon. Sorry to hear,” Bass replied.
Also, on January 8, Bass received messages from then-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and federal officials, including staff from the Biden administration who provided the support.
Criticism was predicted beyond the bus’s decision to travel to Africa in a fierce wind, and after arriving in Los Angeles, he said, “I wasn’t physical here, but I’ve been in touch with many individuals who have been standing here for a long time.
The text exchange was first reported by the LA Times, but was told that it somehow recovered after the message was initially destroyed.
After Bass attended a hearing on Thursday about the multi-billion dollar city management of homeless relief funds, she is pleased that the message has been restored and shared with the public.
Bass told NBCLA’s Conan Nolan in an interview last month that her decision to leave LA was a mistake, especially if the trip wasn’t involved in the forecast and windy urban business.
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