Photos posted on social media show Mayor Karen Bass posing for photos at a cocktail party at the Embassy of Ghana when the Los Angeles Palisades fire broke out on January 7.

As she left the party to fly home, smoke could be seen billowing across large swaths of the city.

Bass came to the West African country as part of a Biden administration delegation for the inauguration of Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama, a ceremony she also attended earlier in the day. She traveled abroad on January 4, as the National Weather Service intensified warnings of the coming storm, and returned to Los Angeles around 11 a.m. on January 8, 24 hours after the fire.

A spokesman for the mayor said the U.S. ambassador to Ghana held a reception for the delegation before they flew to the United States on a military plane. Bass said much of the party was spent on the phone in a separate room.

Bass's decision to leave the city during the weather warning and the timing of her return have come under scrutiny in recent days, drawing outrage and national media coverage.

A photo posted on social media showed Bass appearing to pose for a photo at the party just before 8pm Ghana time, or 12 noon Los Angeles time, on the day of the fire, in which the watches of partygoers could be seen. (Accra, Ghana is 8 hours ahead of Los Angeles.)

Minutes later, Palisades issued an evacuation order.

The photo was posted on Instagram and LinkedIn by city staffer Marissa Bowman, who is not part of the official delegation.

"The presidential delegation was received by the U.S. Ambassador to Ghana on their way to board the flight," Bass spokesman Zach Seidel said, referring to Bass's military flight from Accra to Washington, D.C., before boarding a flight to Commercial flights from Los Angeles. "Most of the time, the mayor is in a different room taking calls from L.A."

Seidel said that the delegation left the ambassador's residence between 8 pm and 8:30 pm local time and went directly to the tarmac of the military base. The mayor "will return to Los Angeles on a military aircraft at 9:00 pm."

This means she will be leaving the party on January 7th between 12pm and 12:30pm Los Angeles time.

Other photos posted by Bowman and Ghanaian host Nathaniel Atto show Bass smiling, posing and chatting with attendees. Bowman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Attoh said the gathering was definitely a low-key event to introduce the Biden delegation to some prominent Ghanaians. Atto said there were several speakers and the guest list included religious leaders, business people, diplomats, athletes, some politicians and senior embassy staff.

Municipal Emergency Management Department alarm Angelenos took to social media to talk about the fire at 11:22 a.m. on January 7, writing on More than 10 acres, residents are warned to avoid the area.

The Pacific Coast Highway was partially closed at Topanga Canyon Boulevard just before 11:30 a.m. that day due to the fire, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

At noon that day, thick smoke could be seen throughout the city. The city issued an evacuation order minutes after 12 p.m.

In the days after the fire, Bass was harshly criticized by former mayoral opponent Rick Caruso and others for his premature absence. Pod Save America host Tommy Vietor wrote on Ari Emanuel told Parker, "If it was true that she issued the warning on Saturday, it was a dereliction of duty."

Staff writer Laura Nelson contributed reporting.