Kacey Montoya has landed at FOX 11 for her first on-air appearance since leaving KTLA six months ago.
The Los Angeles weathercaster, whose April exit from KTLA came during corporate layoffs, made her debut Thursday evening at the rival station. Montoya, who had spent years building a following at her former employer, signaled the move earlier in the week through social media.
In an Instagram Reel, she gave followers a behind-the-scenes glimpse of her new newsroom, showing herself preparing weather maps and rehearsing for an upcoming segment. The clip captured her return to the routine she had stepped away from half a year earlier.
“This is the first that I’ve been on air in six months since we worked at the other place,” Montoya said in the Reel.
She confirmed the timing directly with her audience in a post: “You can see me back on TV this Thursday evening on @foxla.”
Montoya also teased Southern California’s Halloween forecast, sharing weather maps from Tuesday evening and polling fans on whether rain would disrupt the holiday. The interactive post showed her picking up where she left off, blending forecasting with the social media engagement that had become part of her on-air brand.
The announcement drew immediate reactions from colleagues across both stations. KTLA meteorologist Vera Jimenez commented on the post, “Yay! So glad your back on!!”
FOX 11 anchor Brooke Thomas looked ahead to their first broadcast together, writing, “Yay can’t wait for our first newscast together!”
Montoya’s April departure from KTLA was part of broader corporate cutbacks rather than an individual termination. After her final broadcast, she pivoted full-time to Fix’n Fidos, the animal welfare nonprofit she founded. The organization funds spay and neuter services across Southern California, work she continued during her months away from television.
The move to FOX 11 represents a direct jump to a competitor in the same market, a notable rebound for a personality who had built significant local recognition. Her nonprofit work had kept her visible in the community during the interim, though she had not appeared on air since the spring layoffs.
Montoya’s return puts her back in front of a Los Angeles audience during a period of transition at local news stations, where on-air talent shifts have become increasingly common amid industry-wide cost-cutting. Her ability to land at a rival outlet within months suggests sustained demand for her forecasting and on-camera presence.
The Halloween tease indicated she would be contributing to coverage of the upcoming holiday, with her first week back overlapping with one of the busier weather periods for Southern California broadcasters.