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Storm brings snow, cold to West for New Year’s

Ryan Winn, bundles up his son, Ian Winn, as they wait for a train Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2014, in Fullerton, Calif. A very cold low-pressure system followed by an arctic airmass was dropping through the state, bringing the possibility of very low-elevation snow and blustery winds Tuesday night and early Wednesday and then a big chill through Thursday morning according to the National Weather Service. (AP Photo/The Orange County Register, Jeff Gritchen) MAGS OUT; LOS ANGELES TIMES OUT Ryan Winn, bundles up his son, Ian Winn, as they wait for a train Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2014, in Fullerton, Calif. A very cold low-pressure system followed by an arctic airmass was dropping through the state, bringing the possibility of very low-elevation snow and blustery winds Tuesday night and early Wednesday and then a big chill through Thursday morning according to the National Weather Service. (AP Photo/The Orange County Register, Jeff Gritchen) MAGS OUT; LOS ANGELES TIMES OUT

By Associated Press December 31, 2014 1 min read

A blustery winter storm has dumped snow across the West, forcing residents and party-goers in some usually sun-soaked cities to bundle up for a frosty New Year’s.

Strong gusts toppled trees in California, killing at least three people since Tuesday. More than 180 motorists were rescued after they were stranded by snow on mountain roads.

Revelers planning to celebrate in Las Vegas or by watching the Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, were bracing for near freezing temperatures.

The National Weather Service says the storm was moving across California into the Mojave Desert and Las Vegas, dropping snow on parts of northern Arizona and Utah along the way.

Ice and snow also made roads and highways treacherous in New Mexico and along the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma.