Brutal cold will open the door for a winter storm to take a somewhat unusual track through the South and create treacherous conditions.

Knoxville and East Tennessee will soon be covered in a fresh blanket of snow. Here's when and how much snow East Tennessee can expect on Friday.

▪ If the storm’s center tracks near the North Carolina coast — say, 50 to 100 miles off shore — that would allow for more sustained northerly winds over the Piedmont and a more prolonged period of snow there. The Coastal plan might see snow in that case, but along the coast it would be mostly rain.