The girl died in the ski resort of Flaine (pictured)
(Picture: Pixabay )A volunteer firefighter who was involved in a skiing collision that killed a five-year-old British girl in the French Alps could face prison after being charged with manslaughter.
If found guilty, the French man could spend up to three years behind bars and a fine of €45,000 (£37,600).
The little girl has been named locally as Ophelie and the daughter of a British expat family.
She was in a lesson on the piste when a skier hit her at a resort of Flaine, in the Alps.
It is the third fatal accident in six years on the Serpentine ski run, Newspaper Le Dauphiné libéré reported.
The Serpentine ski run is a “blue” slope meaning it is “easy” for skiers to use.
An inquiry will try to establish if the man was speeding too fast on the slopes.
The man, who is said to be a regular skier at the resort, apparently could not see the girl because a snow bump appeared to cover her, investigators said.
A post-mortem examination was carried out in Grenoble on Monday.
Bernard Pascal-Mousselard, chairman of the National Association of Piste Directors and of the Security of Winter Resorts, told Le Dauphiné libéré: "The marvellous weather and good snow at the moment mean some people want to go faster than they are able to.”
He added: “There will always be some people who think they are alone on the slopes. When we see people who are a danger to others [we] explain our way of seeing things.
“They often listen. It’s difficult to know whether they do as they are told or whether they go off and do the same thing again the next day.”
