Embattled Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has shrugged off calls for her to resign over her response to devastating wildfires.
During a press conference, she stressed the importance of prioritizing the protection and saving of lives and homes for everyone involved.
She assured the public that after ensuring safety and saving lives, a thorough evaluation will be conducted to assess the effectiveness of the actions taken and to make necessary corrections or hold those responsible accountable.
In response to a question about her leadership, she reiterated that her main focus remains on the critical tasks at hand and that she will continue to concentrate on them.
Furious residents had blasted Bass for traveling to Ghana while the city burns, despite a warning for ‘critical’ weather conditions in the days prior.
She addressed the backlash on Thursday, and attempted to quell the growing anger over her trip overseas.
Bass flew out to attend the West African country’s presidential inauguration on Tuesday, after meteorologists warned that a ‘recipe for fire’ was on track to strike LA.
The mayor was there to attend the inauguration of the new president and meet with the country’s first-ever female vice president.
California Governor Gavin Newsom and Bass tour the downtown business district of Pacific Palisades on Wednesday
People embrace as they return to the home after it has been burned down by wildfires in the Los Angeles area
As she returned to The Golden State on Wednesday, she was cornered by journalist David Blevins from Sky News and refused to answer his questions.
Bass immediately indicated that she’s not going to answer his questions and turned away.
Blevins then asked her a series of questions that she did not respond to and looked at the ground aimlessly.
He says: ‘Do you owe your citizens an apology for being absent while their homes were burning?’
‘Do you regret cutting the fire department by millions of dollars, Madam Mayor? Have you nothing to say today?’
Bass tried to cut the LA Fire Department’s budget by some $23million in 2024 but settled for $17.6 million in cuts.
‘Elon Musk says that you’re utterly incompetent, are you considering your position? Have you absolutely nothing to say to citizens who are dealing with this disaster? No apologies for them?’
‘Do you think you should’ve been visiting Ghana while this was unfolding back home?’
Blevins then follows Bass out of a corridor at the airport before demanding she give a statement to the citizens of her city. She ignores him and walks out onto the tarmac.
Firefighters battle the Eaton Fire in strong winds as many homes burn on January 7, 2025 in Pasadena
Bass tried to cut the LA Fire Department’s budget by some $23million in 2024 but settled for $17.6 million in cuts
On Wednesday she suffered another gaffe as she staggered her way through a press conference.
She seemed bewildered as she read her own notes, saying: ‘Emergency information, resources and shelter is available. All of this can be found at URL.’
Scores of A-listers have taken to their social media accounts to hit out at Bass and the city over the response to the fires.
Sarah Michelle Geller said on her Instagram: ‘City of LA you want everyone to evacuate yet you have complete gridlock and not one traffic cop on the roads helping.’
Actress Sara Foster added: ‘We pay the highest taxes in California. Our fire hydrants were empty.
‘Our vegetation was overgrown, brush not cleared. Our reservoirs were emptied by our governor because tribal leaders wanted to save fish.
Our fire department budget was cut by our mayor. But thank god drug addicts are getting their drug kits. RESIGN. Your far left policies have ruined our state. And also our party.’
Former Dancing with the Stars professional dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy also expressed his dissatisfaction on social media.
Debris from a burned houses is seen in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood
The flames have wiped out over 1,000 structures and scorched famous landmarks that stood in its path
A firefighting helicopter drops water as the Sunset Fire burns in the Hollywood Hills with evacuations ordered on January 8, 2025
‘5th largest economy on the planet. Firefighters didn’t have enough water pressure to do their job?! Are you joking me?! The taxes we pay for 3rd world infrastructure is unbelievable?! Come on.
Actor James Woods also blasted the mayor, blaming her and California Governor Gavin Newsom for the fire.
‘This fire is not from ‘climate change,’ you ignorant asshole. It’s because liberal idiots like you elect liberal idiots like Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass.
‘One doesn’t understand the first thing about fire management and the other can’t fill the water reservoirs’, he wrote.
The death toll of the historic infernos have now reached five, as heroic firefighters still battle hellish conditions on the front lines of at least five different fires.
Officials have warned that they expect those figures to climb as they continue to grapple with the infernos.
The fires have ripped areas apart, turning would-be picturesque neighborhoods into smoldering neighborhoods.
Pushed on by powerful winds, the flames have wiped out over 1,000 structures and scorched famous landmarks that stood in its path.
The homes of Anthony Hopkins, John Goodman and Miles Teller are among those destroyed, while dozens of other stars now face an anxious wait alongside their neighbors to learn if anything could be saved.
Mandy Moore, Cary Elwes, Paris Hilton, James Woods, Billy Crystal and his wife Janice all claimed to have seen their homes go up in smoke in the Palisades Fire.
LA Fire Chief Kristin Crowley believes the fire started accidentally in a back garden around 10am Tuesday morning.
A general view of houses burned by the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood
LA Fire Chief Kristin Crowley believes the fire started accidentally in a back garden around 10am Tuesday morning
She told reporters the fire is ‘spreading at a speed beyond anything we’ve seen… it’s now unlike anything we have seen in our lifetime.’
20 people have also been arrested on suspicion of raiding homes in parts of Southern California during the blazes.
Sheriff of Los Angeles County Robert Luna mentioned in a Wednesday press conference that two people had been arrested for looting.
He said: ‘It’s always sad when I have to say this, but part of our responsibility is to make sure no one loots or steals from our residents or our community members who are already being impacted.
‘And I’m sad to report we made two arrests this morning for looting. So if you are thinking about coming into any of these areas to steal from our residents, I’m going to tell you something: You’re going to be caught, you’re going to be arrested and you’re going to be prosecuted.’
On Thursday, Kathryn Barger, chair of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, said the sheriff’s department had now arrested 20 people for looting or burglary.
The rise in cases has caused a number of residents of the Pacific Palisades neighborhood to hire a private security firm to watch their homes.
Private forecaster AccuWeather estimated initial damage and economic loss at more than $50billion (£40billion).
More than 1,500 California firefighters are tasked with quelling the wind-whipped wildfires, while the California National Guard prepares to deploy more military personnel to assist.
Already, 600 service members have arrived from the Cal Guard along with equipment to help local authorities. They brought 10 rotary wing aircrafts and two C-130 planes to help fight the fires.
