Speeding Skier Charged with Manslaughter After Killing 5-Year-Old in Ski Slope Crash

A 5-year-old British girl was killed during a skiing lesson when another skier violently slammed into her at “high speed.”

According to officials, the girl only identified as Ophélie was with four other children in a skiing lesson in the French Alps about the safety of the beginner’s slope at the Flaine Ski Resort. When she went to turn on the slope, she was hit by a speeding skier at high speed. The 40-year-old skier tried to avoid the young girl but failed. He tried to aid her immediately, but she was unconscious.

Ophélie was pronounced dead on her way to a local hospital.

The suspect was a volunteer firefighter and could face up to five years in prison and an $85,000 fine. After Saturday’s tragic incident, the skier was in custody Monday for manslaughter. Prosecutors blame the skier for excessive speed in a beginner’s slope area.

According to the New York Post, Jean-Paul Constant, the mayor of nearby Arâches, also told the broadcaster that they were actively looking for a psychologist who speaks English for the family of the girl.