'Inexplicable decision': Critics blast LA mayor over Ghana trip as wildfires ignited

The mayor of Las Angeles is facing intense backlash as internet critics question her glaring absence as raging infernos have killed at least five people and forced tens of thousands to evacuate.

Several fires scorched more than 25,000 acres late Wednesday and destroyed more than 1,000 buildings.

Karen Bass, a six-term congresswoman who became the first woman elected as mayor of Los Angeles in 2022 when she defeated billionaire developer Rick Caruso, was thousands of miles away on Tuesday as the wind-swept fires ignited.