When flames erupted in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was more than 7,000 miles away, on a diplomatic mission to Africa.

Bass headed home shortly thereafter and was in transit for nearly 24 hours as the fire ravaged the Palisades and surrounding communities. She and her office have said she was in constant communication during that period.

But new correspondence with The Times raises questions about whether that narrative is accurate, or if Bass is withholding public records.

On Jan. 10, The Times filed a public records request for all text messages sent or received by the mayor while she was in transit on Jan. 7 or Jan. 8 that mention fire response or her travel plans.

Nearly two months later, on March 6, Bass’ office said it had “no responsive records,” without stating whether it was withholding any records or any reasons for not producing the records. The office did not answer questions about whether any correspondence had been deleted, or how that would comply with public records laws and the city’s records retention policy.

Bass spokesperson Zach Seidl did not respond when asked if there was a reason her messages were being withheld, or if no such messages existed.

In response to public records requests, other agencies and public officials have released a multitude of records from the early days of the fire. California law dictates the release of these kind of records, unless there is a specific exemption.

Bass left Accra, Ghana at about 9 p.m. on Jan. 7, or roughly 1 p.m. Los Angeles time, as the fire grew, traveling the first leg on a military plane, where she was able to make phone calls and communicate by text and email.

Early the next morning, she boarded a commercial flight at Washington Dulles International Airport and would have only been able to communicate by email and text before arriving at Los Angeles International Airport at 11:24 a.m. on Jan. 8, according to her itinerary and flight records.

Bass has said that she was on the phone throughout the military flight from Accra to Dulles, and her staff has said she was actively involved in decision-making while abroad. She was also communicating via text message during that leg of her trip, according to at least one public official.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said Jan. 8 that she had been texting with Bass until 10:30 p.m. Los Angeles time the night before, which would have meant they were texting as Bass flew from Africa to Washington, D.C.

“Trust me, she’s very engaged. Very engaged,” Barger, whose district includes the Eaton fire zone, said Jan. 8 of Bass and her texts.

It’s unclear why Bass’ office would not provide such text messages, if they exist, in response to The Times’ records request.

“If she was texting on city business, she’s doing her job on the public dime, whether by text message from an airplane by telephone, or by email from her desk,” said First Amendment Coalition Legal Director David Loy. “Those are public records, and I think the public ordinarily should have a right to see them unless there’s some specific exemption that would apply to the Public Records Act, like attorney-client privilege, hypothetically.”

The Times is in possession of at least one text message that the city should have disclosed in response to the public records request.

At 11:50 a.m. Los Angeles time on Jan. 7, L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, whose district includes the Pacific Palisades, texted Bass.

“Reaching out about Palisades fire. I understand our County Fire Dept is supporting City and our Office of Emergency Management has been in touch with City staff, also. Do you need additional help/ support? Anything you want to put on our radar at this time?” Horvath wrote Bass in a text message Horvath’s office provided in response to a public records request from The Times.

Bass responded at 1:07 p.m. Los Angeles time, or just after 9 p.m. Ghana time, when she would have been on her way back home.

“Thanks for asking I think we are good—I’ll call you in the am”, Bass wrote.

It’s unclear why this mundane response was withheld by Bass’ office, or what other messages the office has withheld.

Even if the messages were sent on Bass’ personal phone, they would still be considered a matter of public record if they deal with official business, the California Supreme Court ruled in 2017.

Times staff writers Matt Hamilton and David Zahniser contributed to this report.