A popular Cleveland TV meteorologist is back covering Northeast Ohio weather following a fall from grace after a drunk driving arrest in Cuyahoga Falls.

Hollie Strano, the former WKYC Channel 3 meteorologist who was fired in September 2024 after 22 years, announced that she is joining the news team at the fairly new WCTU - Cleveland 13 News.

Strano was arrested in November 2023 and charged with one count of operating a vehicle under the influence by Falls police after her vehicle crashed near Towpath Tennis Center on Akron-Peninsula Road.

Authorities say she had a blood alcohol level more than three times the legal limit in the Thanksgiving night crash.

Strano later pleaded guilty to the charge and set off on a public road to sobriety where she regularly provided updates on social media.

She did some gigs providing weather forecasts and reporting for radio stations including Mix 94.1 in Canton, but this is her first return to more traditional TV.

While its name may look like a typical TV channel, WCTU bills itself as a "community-driven news network" that delivers its news on digital platforms like its webpage cleveland13news.com, YouTube and other social media platforms.

In a tongue-in-cheek promotion for her return to Cleveland TV, Strano says this time she is going to do it her way this time as she sheds the "old version" herself − a traditional long black dress that is an "inauthentic" version of herself.

She tells the viewers that she is "going to weather" her way this time and literally rips off the old dress to reveal a sleek sleeveless version.

Cleveland 13 News President Matt Greminger said the community has a connection with Strano from her career to her recovery.

“Hollie has always had a genuine relationship with Northeast Ohio viewers,” Greminger said in a statement. “Her story is one of perseverance, honesty, and growth. Cleveland 13 is proud to provide a platform where she can continue sharing her passion for weather and for this community.”

In addition to covering the weather, Strano said, she will also do other news stories and interviews.

“People are craving something real,” Strano said in a statement. “That’s what I want to bring moving forward.”

In a sit-down interview with the station, Hollie had a heart-to-heart chat with Greminger that was released on Friday about her return to a Cleveland newsroom.

“I will never not be sorry for what happened,” Strano said in the interview. “... I can now look back at it and say that it was 100% one of the worst days of my life, but also one of the best.”

Strano said in the TV interview that as she struggled with her sobriety, she also had a cancer diagnosis in 2024 that resulted in two surgeries.

With the help of others and working personally on becoming a better person, Strano said in the interview with WCTU Cleveland 13 News that she looks forward to this new opportunity.

“The creative part of (this) is endless, and I love that," she said in the interview. "I have no limits. I was limited, but not anymore. So stay tuned.”

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Hollie Strano returns to Cleveland TV market