Michel Charlet, a conservative, was given a three-month suspended prison sentence after the court ruled that he had failed in his duty to move people out of the outlying hamlet of Montroc, even though he knew it was at risk.

Unusually heavy snowfalls in the Alps in early February 1999 had put the region on a high state of alert, but Charlet told the court there were "600 homes in Chamonix exposed to avalanches. It was impossible to evacuate them all."

Victims' families welcomed the decision. "Things have to change so that our children did not die in vain. This will help me in my task of grieving," said Jean-Claude Bourdais, whose 21 year-old son died in the avalanche.

French mayors have expressed growing disquiet in recent years at the way they and other local officials are being made legally responsible for disasters which they say are beyond their control.

TERRA.WIRE