ABSTRACT
During an intense rainstorm on 22 May 2013, a severe distress occurred at a reinforced earth wall in Hong Kong. The wall was under construction at the time of the incident which involved a dislodgement of 78 facing panels with a total soil loss of about 1,300 m3 and a distressed groundmass of 5,500 m3. The distress was confined to three localised areas along the wall, together with the formation of a sinkhole at the backyard of the wall. A detailed investigation was conducted to establish the probable causes and mechanism of the incident. This paper summarizes the key findings of the investigation and the lessons learnt identified from the incident.
