carolina's news leader, this is news 13 at 6:00. >> larry: off the top, a look from eagle's nest mountain. this is really the calm before the storm. but it's all about to change. >> darcel: north carolina is under a state of emergency, as well as buncombe county as we brace for a winter wallop of snow, ice, and wind. some schools are already closed tomorrow including asheville city schools within the past ten minutes. >> larry: let's get to our team of meteorologists now. jason boyer starts us off. >> jason: we've been watching the model, zack and i today. we've ratcheted up. the flake-o-meter is up to the top now. hopefully you bought the bread and milk and other things of interest. we're talking serious snow and ice. now here's your winter storm timeline. tonight it's an icy mix of freezing rain and snow. friday morning, when you wake up, there will be snow and there will be ice on the ground already. so it's not time to go out and drive around and check out the scenery. i think saturday afternoon it will taper quickly and shift to the mountains. the higher elevations as this storm bombs off the north carolina coast. where is it right now? right here. look at this spin. it doesn't look like much, does it?

strengthen. one is going to be off the coast. one is going to be over western north carolina. temperatures a little deceiving right now. it is way above freezing almost anywhere in western north carolina, exception up in boone. these temperatures will be cooling. after sunset, they'll drop off. once the initial rain, sleet and snow, we're going to see a big drop in temperatures. meteorologist zack green joining us. we certainly have the potential for ice and snow >> zack: the temperature, that's going to be the major factor. we were talking about how they were slightly warmer today. we're looking at this explainer here to show you what is to come. first, it's actually starting

then it's going to start to hit that cooler air mass towards the surface, creating freezing rain. as we go below that 32 degree mark, it's going to transition. that snow fall is going to continue for the majority of the

now the ice certainly going to play a big part. we still advise you, if you don't have to head out, don't. we are talking about big implications and travel issues as we head out tomorrow morning. >> our goal with this potential winter storm coming to carolina is to be overprepared. >> darcel: as the governor said, we are preparing extensively for this storm. >> larry: our team of reporters are bringing you everything you need to tonight. kimberly king is live in henderson county. kim. >> kim: good evening to you, larry. we have been speaking with henderson county officials who tonight have been discussing the likely possibility that they many declare a state of emergency in the county. what does that mean? it means they'll be able to access additional supplies in case of very heavy snow in the area and the ability to close down roads they consider

accumulations. hendersonville's salt barn has crews on duty tonight preparing for shifts overnight. emergency management director rocky hider has been talking with agencies across the county and also sending out reverse 911 texts to residents in the area who have signed up to warn them to get ready. >> today is the day to make those preparations to stock up on your supplies, make sure that you've got the medications that are required to get through at least the weekend. >> kim: now in rutherford

water, which is also called brine, as a pre-treatment to whatever precipitation falls. they've been doing that ahead of the storm so that once that precip hits the ground, it will already have that pre-treatment on the ground to break it down whether it's ice, but more likely if it's snow that will help keep it to a minimum. even though it will be accumulating. the big fear for all those in

there are benchmarks to when it will be more dangerous. starting at a quarter of an inch. they're looking at that. but at this point as we've been hearing from our meteorologists, the minimal ice looks like more snow than ice. kimberly king, news 13. >> l lry: talking about ice, with that potential comes the potential for power outages. duke energy says they have crews on call to bring in extraraelp this week. >> darcel: transformers and ready to go should you lose >> the men and women that work and serve our customers each and on the gear that they need to respond as quickly as they can and to do the work safely and

punch. >> larry: if you do lose power during the storm, keep the number on hand. call 1800-poweron. >> darcel: if you have to drive, news 13 evan donovan has tips to keep us safe. >> evan: make sure your tank is full. if you're going to be out on the roads tomorrow, you could get stranded or have an accident. >> evan: tires, another big thing. the penny test. you put your penny inside the treds, if you can see lincoln's head, you need to replace your tires. you want to make sure you have enough windshield wiper fluid. check your battery if you get a chance. if it's already a little bit low, the extreme temperatures can drain whatever is left. kitty litter or sand and salt, you can put that underneath your tires in case you get stuck. if you hit that nightmare scenario, black ice, you start fish tailing, we talked to a

>> you stir in to the skid. the main thing is not to get in to the skid. >> evan: that last thing that you might not think about that you might want to have, some sunglasses. mr. ledford says you need to have these because the glare from the snow is going to be really bad. the final one, make sure you're always wearing your seatbelt. >> larry: turning now from the roads to events set for this weekend. many organizers are postponing because of the forecast. >> darcel: ashlea surles is live at the u.s. cellular center. ashlea, two events there have been put on hold. >> ashlea: yeah, darcel. two big events. postpone a major beer fest set for this weekend. just a short time after that, we found they're also going to reschedule the jackson brown concert. the nearly sold out event was set for tomorrow night. nobody's dancing around it with the forecast constantly shifting right now, everyone's plans are still in limbo. this weekend, the four points by sheraton downtown was booked solid. this m mning, over 100 guests were set to come in for the winter warmer beer fest which was canceled by 3:30. but for any business the hotel

storm. >> mission, unc asheville, harris, for example, will call and say do you have any rooms available. >> like everyone else, we're does. if it becomes dangerous for pay trons or workers to come out. >> the risk you take on planning mountains. >> the weather report became a little bit more ominous yesterday so that we needed to postpone the event. decision but now the annual hot chocolate 10k to raise money for parents and teachers at isaac back. safety of everybody. snow. but i have 50 volunteers coming town. and in addition to that, 600 participants. >> ashlea: now venues and organizers are saying the best way to stay up to date on events is to go online. they say they'll be keeping their websites and facebook pages updated throughout this storm. i'm ashlea surles, news 13. >> darcel: emergency workers in our western counties are also preparing for another round of winter weather. >> larry: this comes on top of snow and ice from this week's winter blast that is still on secondary roads. stay home and have alternative heating sources in case the

he also advises checking on your neighbors. >> greatest moment for us is when we enjoy the weekend and most folks do not need our services. >> darcel: with significant snowfall expected, haywood county ambulances have now all been fitted with tire chains. >> larry: stay with news 13 for complete team coverage on the storm on air and online. we will post any updates on the forecast on wlos.com. you can also go there to sign up for text alerts on weather or school closings. we'll post weather information on facebook and twitter pages. >> darcel: a man held prisoner in iran steps foot on american soil for the first time in four years. xt, why his first stop in the state is asheville. >> larry: and digging deeper in to why some leaders want to

the new information the district >> darcel: developing tonight, a call center in asheville is closing its doors and it could potentially impact 250 employees. >> larry: sitel on hendersonville road. employees were told they will have a job until may 30th. the company is working to find them jobs. >> darcel: a man released from a prison in iran is back in the states today and his first stop was in asheville. >> larry: pastor saeed abudini. he was incarcerated in iran back in 2012 after being convicted of trying to establish christian schools.

long advocated for his release. he was taken to the cove today to spend time with family and rest. >> larry: well this just in to the news room tonight. >> darcel: the town of clyde is asking residents to voluntarily conserve water. it comes after a half million gallon loss of water in canton. >> larry: officials tell us do not leave the water running, shower instead of taking baths and limit the use of washers and dish washers. haywood county school leaders released the study examining the possible closing of an elementary school. it's based on falling enrollment,the need to reduce the local budget by $2.4 million and the proximity of two other schools that could accommodate students and staff. >> darcel: the age and hundreds of thousands of dollars of repairs it would need.

>> larry: and we need to get another update on what's happening with the weather. jason, fill us in. >> jason: winter warnings out. we're starting tonight and going until 7:00 a.m. on sunday. gnificant snow and ice for anybody here in the western carolinas. that extends east to greensboro, winston-salem, raleigh. 47 for the high.

we now your news 13 skywatch weather. >> jason: well the headlines are all about this major winter storm that will roll in tonight and really blast us friday in to saturday. crippling storm no doubt about it. one foot of snow for many. that's right. you didn't hear me wrong.

carolina. you know what a few inches will do around here. subtle changes now to the storm's path. very subtle. a bit farther north. that gives us more of an ice potential and even a rain potential, if you believe that, southern mountains and portions tonight. the worst conditions will certainly be tomorrow. even in to saturday, it's not going to improve because our temperatures don't really get above freezing to help the melting process. and the wind, it is going to really crank across the area. we're talking blowing and drifting snow and poor visibility. not saying we're going to see blizzard conditions because you need 30 miles an hour and visibility less than a quarter mile. i don't see that happening.

the i ie is going to be a low impact or a moderate impact. the wind is going to be a moderate impact. when you talk about heavy snow laying on branches, powerlines, they start to come down. power outages will be more common especially tomorrow afternoon and evening. storm for the upstate, you're also on the severe index for snow. you'll have less equipment to deal with it and certainly less experience. ice is moderate and as well the wind. dangerous to impossible travel. i know you hear impossible and you think really? it's that bad? i've got four-wheel drive. even with 4-wheel drive. don't get out unless you have to. have an emergency kit if you are traveling.

plenty of batteries, cell phone. blankets. keep yourself warm. let somebody know where you're going, too. be prepared for power outages. look at these snowfall totals. we're talking a stretch of the blue ridge from yancey, mitchell, avery county, down to northern buncombe, western mcdowell, 12 to 18 plus right there. you get down here in the nantahalas, the balsams. 12 to 18 plus as well for the smokys. the dark blue, that is 8 to 12 inches. that encompasses many of us here in western north carolina, including asheville. 4 to 8 inches here even along i-85 north. and then you get 1 to 4 south of greenville and anderson. quarter inch, maybe top inch of

that's just rough stuff. that could really cripple them. temperatures tonight dropping 20s. we'll stay below freezing in almost any location in western north carolina. maybe a few exceptions south. our temperatures will stay below freezing saturday. 42 on susuday. we'll begin to melt more in to monday in the upstate. you begin to melt sooner than us here in the mountains. meteorologist zack green joins us. zach, we've been talking all about this. the models are really together. >> zack: finally grabbing a little bit of confidence in terms of accumulation. we just had our latest model run about 6 o'clock. you see that european model. one of the outliers but still upwards of 20 inches.

afternoon and evening. >> stan: the north henderson knight basketball team in rare air, 16 and 9 start.

several spectacular plays this season especially around the rim. the players have used the energy and the crowd to help them out on the court. >> they think it's getting me on my game, but it's not. it's really helping me a lot. >> luke: all of the effort and sweat and practice is producing results. >> we worked harder than we ever have before. it's been fun working with these guys and getting the experience in. >> lukuk north henderson is un undefeated at home this season. >> that's one of our team goals actually. the kids thrive in that kind of environment. our fans are great. they come out. the more we win, the more they come out and support us. >> luke: he takes a lot of pride in his defensive energy. >> it helps me team mates play

so i try to play as hard. >> luke: the next home game for north henderson will be next tuesday against tuscola. >> stan: the women's game at furman that was scheduled for wednesday, being played now. that will be followed by the men's game. we'll have highlights for that. western carolina's game at mercer. the games were scheduled to be televised sunday. they will not be prep hoopop, west henderson at smoky mountain postponed. no word on rescheduling. polk at mountain heritage postponed. mars hill and brevard originally set for wednesday. will now be played monday.

expect it to hit us? >> jason: towards midnight. in the morning, ice and snow on the ground.

for more local news, we have breaking news tonight. bracing for imabout.