HKIE TRANSACTIONS

2018, VOL. 25, NO. 2, 102–114

https://doi.org/10.1080/1023697X.2018.1461580

Investigation of an unusual landslide at Sai Kung Sai Wan Road, Sai Kung,
Hong Kong
Dominic O K Loa , Rachel H C Lawa , Roland C T Waia , Axel K L Ngb , Steven J Williamsonb , Jason K S Leeb and
Y M Chengc
a Geotechnical Engineering Office, Civil Engineering and Development Department, the HKSAR Government, Hong Kong, People’s Republic

of China; b AECOM Asia Company Limited, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China; c Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, The
Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

An intense rainstorm on 21 May 2016 resulted a total of 34 natural terrain landslides in the Received 8 December 2017
vicinity of Sai Kung Sai Wan Road in the Sai Kung East Country Park, Hong Kong. One of these Accepted 7 March 2018
landslides was a large-scale failure with a source volume of about 2100 m3 . It was almost an KEYWORDS
order of magnitude larger than all the others. The debris severely eroded a road embankment, Investigation; unusual;
undermining the road and resulting in road closure. The nature of the landslide was unusual in potential for further
that it was a structurally controlled rockslide, with a basal failure surface formed from a persis- large-scale instability;
tent, planar sheeting joint within columnar jointed tuff rock with a maximum depth of about engineering analyses; planar
12 m, while the other landslides that occurred in the country park during the same rainstorm sheeting joint
involved only shallow failures within the regolith. An investigation of this unusual landslide was
undertaken to diagnose the probable mechanism and causes of the failure. As there was con-
cern about further large-scale instability occurring in the adjacent hillside where the sheeting
joint was inferred to extend into, the potential for further large-scale instability was assessed as
part of the investigation. The key components of the investigation included detailed engineer-
ing geological mapping, ground investigation and engineering analyses. This paper presents the
findings of the investigation.

1. Introduction investigation primarily included detailed engineering

During an intense rainstorm in the early morning of
21 May 2016, a total of 34 natural terrain landslides
occurred on the hillside in the vicinity of Sai Kung
Sai Wan Road in the Sai Kung East Country Park.
One of the landslides was significantly larger than the
other 33 landslides, with a source volume of about
2100 m3 , occurring on a hillside above Sai Kung Sai
Wan Road, about 600 m west of Sai Wan Pavilion (here-
after referred to as “the landslide”) (Figure 1). The land-
slide debris completely blocked Sai Kung Sai Wan Road,
which is a country park road with restricted vehic-
ular access. The embankment supporting Sai Kung
Sai Wan Road was severely eroded and the road was
undermined. The landslide resulted in road closure
for several months. No casualties were reported in the
landslide.
Subsequent to the incident, a landslide investigation
was conducted to establish the probable mechanism
and causes of the incident. As there was concern about
further large-scale instability occurring in the adjacent
hillside, the potential for further large-scale instabil-
ity was also assessed as part of the investigation. The
geological mapping, ground investigation and engi-
neering analyses.
2. Site description
The landslide is located on a southeast-facing hillside
with a broad topographic depression. The summit is at
an elevation of about 300 mPD and the Sai Kung Sai
Wan Road is at an elevation of about 150 mPD. The
source area is about 100 m (250 mPD) above the Sai
Kung Sai Wan Road. The hillside adjacent to the source
area is generally densely vegetated with tall shrubs and
mature trees, and is inclined at an angle of about 35°
to 45°. Locally, rock outcrops in linear bands traverse
across the hillside and this is typically characterised by
an increase in local slope angle and decrease in veg-
etation (Figure 2). Solid geology comprises fine ash
vitric tuff of the High Island Formation with charac-
teristic hexagonal columnar jointing [1], which is usu-
ally formed as a result of contraction in volcanic rocks
during the cooling process. Several drainage lines are
located within the hillside which drain down to the

CONTACT Roland C T Wai rolandwai@cedd.gov.hk

© 2018 The Hong Kong Institution of Engineers


Figure 1. Location of the landslide.
northern part of the High Island Reservoir. The land-
slide intersects one perennial drainage line just below
the source area and another ephemeral drainage line is
located along the west flank of the source area. A culvert
underneath the Sai Kung Sai Wan Road discharges sur-
face water from the hillside catchment into the confined
perennial drainage line downstream (Figure 2).
3. Site history and past instabilities
Desk study records and available aerial photographs of
the site from 1924 onwards were reviewed to determine
the site development history and evidence of previous
instability. As the landslide is located in a remote nat-
ural terrain catchment of Sai Kung East Country Park,
the main anthropogenic activities observed in the vicin-
ity are the construction of Sai Kung Sai Wan Road and
the associated slope formation, which were completed
in the 1970s. Some relict landslides were identified at
the hillside adjacent to the source area based on the
geomorphological depressions observed in aerial pho-
tograph interpretation (API), which are predominately
located at the head of drainage lines and along the
over-steepened flanks of incised drainage lines. One of
these relict landslides has its crown located immedi-
ately above the source area of the landslide. This relict
landslide has been registered in the Enhanced Natu-
ral Terrain Landslide Inventory (ENTLI) and classified
as Class C1 under the ENTLI classification system,
which defines it as a poorly defined feature with broad
rounded morphology and likely a relatively old feature.
In the decades before the intense rainstorm on 21 May
2016, the hillside in the vicinity of Sai Kung Sai Wan
Road was inactive, with only some minor instabilities.
Rainfall analysis conducted for the rainstorm on 21
May 2016 shows that the 6-hour rainfall (with a rolling
maximum of 346 mm) was severe with a calculated
return period of 200 years. This rainstorm was the most
HKIE TRANSACTIONS 103
intense on record with respect to the short-duration
(1 hour to 12 hours) that occurred in Sai Kung East
Country Park area.
4. Landslide process
The landslide initiated as a structurally controlled,
translational rockslide along a distinctive, persistent,
planar basal sheeting joint with a detached volume
of about 2100 m3 from the source area approximately
100 m above Sai Kung Sai Wan Road. Between the
source area and Sai Kung Sai Wan Road, the steep ter-
rain, with an average gradient of about 50°, provided
additional energy and erosive power to the landslide
debris, and as a result most of the pre-failure shallow
regolith was stripped off. The landslide debris entered
the perennial drainage line where the debris became
confined and channelised before coming to rest in a
natural drainage line above High Island Reservoir. The
total travel distance of the debris was about 500 m.
5. Post-landslide observations
5.1. General
Several field inspections of the landslide were con-
ducted over the following few months to assess the
residual risk and look for evidence of the dominant
landslide processes. Due to difficulties in accessing the
source location and the remoteness of the available van-
tage points, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was
engaged on the day after the landslide to identify any
obvious signs of distress, such as tension cracks and
deformation as well as other relevant geological fea-
tures, to facilitate a quick initial evaluation of the land-
slide condition whilst access was being arranged for
ground inspections. A photogrammetric topographic
survey by UAV was also conducted to obtain the
post-failure site topography to facilitate the source
104 D O K LO ET AL.
Figure 2. General view showing the landslide and site setting.
volume estimation and the subsequent engineering
analyses.
The post-landslide observations of the source area
and the debris trail are presented in the following Sec-
tions. A longitudinal section of the landslide is given in
Figure 3.
5.2. Source area
A persistent, planar sheeting joint (providing a basal
failure plane) inclined at approximately 35° to 40°, and
with an easterly dip direction of about 100° forms the
source floor. The source floor dips across the source
area as well as the downslope, giving an asymmetric
morphology in transverse section, and with the sheet-
ing joint probably extending into the adjacent hillside.
This asymmetry gives the source area a wedge geome-
try with a steep (70°) scarp at the east flank up to 12 m
in height, but with no scarp at all on the west flank of the
source area. The source area is about 18 m wide, 60 m
long and a maximum of about 12 m deep. The source
volume is estimated to be about 2100 m3 based on
field measurements and the comparison between pre-
failure Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) survey
data and post-failure photogrammetric topographic
survey data. A general view and the transverse section
of the source area are shown in Figures 4 and 5
respectively.
The exposed sheeting joint forming the source floor
comprises moderately decomposed tuff with a distinc-
tive hexagonal joint pattern from the columnar joints.
The tuff has weathered to an off-white colour along the
joint, with occasional iron staining, but no infilling was
observed. Distinctive striations were locally observed
on the source floor parallel to the direction of landslide
movement. The lack of any distress or relative move-
ment observed between columnar joints in the source
floor and the adjacent east flank suggests that the stria-
tions were formed during the failure and not due to pre-
failure incremental movement (Figures 6 and 7). At the
lower extremity of the source floor adjacent to the east
flank, the dip angle reduces significantly to around 10°
to 15°, and this joint orientation was observed to extend
 HKIE TRANSACTIONS 105

Figure 3. Longitudinal section of the landslide.

Daylighting
edge of
Break-in-Slope sheeting joint

Figure 4. General view of the source area.

laterally eastwards into the adjacent hillside along a sheeting joint to daylight. This break-in-slope is proba-
band of rock outcrop. Immediately below the source bly related to local weakening of the rock mass along a
area, there is a convex break-in-slope which allows the shear zone below the source area (Figure 4).
106 D O K LO ET AL.
Figure 5. Transverse section of the source area, Section A-A.
Figure 6. View looking upslope on the persistent planar sheeting joint forming the basal failure plane.
At the west flank, the sheeting joint was exposed
along a pre-failure narrow, vertical band of rock out-
crop which was the location of the ephemeral drainage
line. As the sheeting joint is exposed along the outcrop,
it would have probably facilitated ingress of water into
the joint during the rainstorm (Figure 4).
The main scarp and east flank mainly comprise
moderately decomposed tuff with a relatively thin
veneer of partially weathered rock mass and colluvium
above it (Figure 7). Columnar jointed tuff was partly
exposed in the upper portion of the east flank, typi-
cally with two joint faces exposed and forming sub-
vertical corners, protruding out from the east flank.
Some exposed corners were observed to have been
crushed or truncated, indicating that some shearing of
intact rock asperities may have taken place to allow
the failure to occur (Figure 7). Seepage was observed
emanating from several points along the base of the
main scarp (Figure 4) with minor but fairly consistent
flow observed during several post-landslide inspections
which were conducted days after any significant rain-
fall. This suggests that the seepage was unlikely to be
a short-term response to an intense rainfall event. The
seepage water was flowing across the source floor, along
the dip direction, towards the base of the east flank.
As the joint aperture between the source floor and the
east flank is extremely narrow (Figure 6), the seepage
water was free-draining directly along the intersection
downslope.
5.3. Debris trail
The debris trail gradually becomes more confined
above Sai Kung Sai Wan Road where it is coincident
with a perennial drainage line. Sai Kung Sai Wan Road
is elevated above the associated upslope culvert area
and proved to be a significant obstruction to the debris

Colluvium
Weathered rock mass
Tuff (III)
No evidence of relative movement between joints
above and below the failure plane
Figure 7. View looking northeast of the source floor, main scarp and upper part of east flank showing geological profile.
flow, despite the large debris volume and calculated
high velocity. Consequently, an estimated 460 m3 of
debris was deposited on the road and upslope around
the culvert entrance. Despite the obstruction, about
1830 m3 of debris passed over the road, eroded the
road embankment, undermining the road and entrain-
ing the concrete culvert structures. The drainage line
becomes incised and initial erosion is the dominant
process, but between Chainage 237 and 300 the gradient
reduces and the drainage line becomes less incised, with
a relatively flat peripheral area adjacent to the south
bank resulting in major deposition of about 510 m3
of mainly coarse, clastic debris. In this zone, large
concrete fragments, assumed to be from the culvert
structures were observed within the deposited debris,
and superelevation marks were observed where the
debris flowed around the sharp bends in the drainage
line. From Chainage 300 to the end of the landslide
at Chainage 560, about 875 m3 of debris was evenly
distributed within the drainage line. No evidence of
debris flow processes, for example the deposition of
remoulded debris (a slurry with coarse fragments sus-
pended in a fine matrix) was observed after Chainage
560, although a sand-, gravel- and cobble-sized debris
was observed further downstream and considered to
have been deposited by the post-landslide fluvial pro-
cesses [2].
As the failure mainly involved detachment of colum-
nar jointed tuff rock, the observed debris predomi-
nantly comprised boulder-sized, joint-controlled rock
blocks and rock fragments with some fine debris from
the soil component of the partially weathered rock mass
and colluvium.
HKIE TRANSACTIONS 107
Sheared corner of
columnar jointed tuff
protruding into the scar
12 m
6. Stability conditions at the time of failure
6.1. General
Stability and seepage analyses were carried out to model
the stability conditions at the time of failure to assist
in the diagnosis of the mechanism and causes of the
failure.
The source area had a wedge geometry (Figure 5)
and the frictional resistance from the basal planar
sheeting joint and the irregular, saw-tooth profiled
columnar jointed tuff exposed in the east flank could
be considerably different. In addition, the shape of the
failure scar on plan was irregular and the east flank
included a soil portion in the upper few metres. The
failure surface is highly three-dimensional in nature,
and the side frictional resistance can greatly affect the
stability assessment. Initially, a two-dimensional slope
stability analysis was tried out for the present work, but
the results did not appear to be reasonable. Therefore, a
three-dimensional slope stability analysis was adopted.
The stability analyses and the seepage analyses assisted
in examining the likely range of cleft water pressure on
the failure surface at the time of failure for the opera-
tive shear strength parameters for sheeting joint and for
columnar jointed rock.
The stability analyses were performed using the
three-dimensional slope stability programme “Slope3D”
[3], which adopts the limit equilibrium method by con-
sidering both rigorous force and moment equilibrium
(Morgenstern–Price approach) of each imaginary “col-
umn” of the ground mass.
A three-dimensional geological model for stability
analyses was developed based on detailed field mapping
108 D O K LO ET AL.
and using the pre-failure LiDAR survey data, and
post-failure photogrammetric topographic survey data
obtained by UAV. The geological interfaces projected
into the adjacent hillside both longitudinally and lat-
erally were carefully established with reference to the
geomorphology and geology of the study area.
Assumptions on adopted engineering parameters
were made based on field observations and engineer-
ing judgement, as described in the following Sections,
in view of the limited ground investigation undertaken
(Section 8.2).
6.2. Seepage analyses
6.2.1. General
Given the scale and the geological setting of the land-
slide, cleft water pressure was likely to have devel-
oped within the planar sheeting joint at the time of
failure. Based on the findings from the post-landslide
inspections (Section 5), direct water ingress from the
ephemeral drainage line along the west flank of the
source area and direct infiltration at the hillside within
and above the source area were two possible sources of
water for the build-up of cleft water pressure within the
sheeting joint. To evaluate the effect of these two pos-
sible sources on the sheeting joint and a possible range
of the cleft water pressure built up at the sheeting joint
at the time of failure, two sets of seepage analyses were
conducted using the computer programme SEEP/W.
6.2.2. Direct infiltration
The seepage analyses for infiltration account for the
intense rainstorm on 21 May 2016 as well as the pre-
ceding rainstorms on 10 and 20 May 2016. Owing to the
time-dependent nature of the problem, transient analy-
ses were conducted to assess the potential development
of cleft water pressure at the planar sheeting joint at the
time of failure. Apart from the geology and topogra-
phy, the rate of infiltration at different rainfall intensities
and the permeability of the ground materials are key
inputs to the analyses. The results of the seepage analy-
ses indicate that at the time of failure, only limited cleft
water pressure would have developed within the sheet-
ing joint due to the infiltration from the ground surface.
Infiltration alone was not the main source of water
contributing to the development of cleft water pressure
within the sheeting joint. The results of the seepage
analyses, showing considerable response time to infil-
tration from intense rainfalls, are also consistent with
the steady, minor seepage observed around the main
scarp during several post-landslide inspections carried
out days after any significant rainfall.
6.2.3. Direct water ingress from the ephemeral
drainage line along the west flank
Another set of seepage analyses was carried out to look
for an other possible source of water, namely direct
water ingress from the west flank to the planar sheet-
ing joint, and to assess its potential contribution to
the development of cleft water pressure at the sheet-
ing joint at the time of failure. In the analyses, surface
water from the ephemeral drainage line during the rain-
storm was assumed to have entered the planar sheeting
joint directly at the west flank where the sheeting joint
was exposed and likely open due to stress relief. On
the other hand, as the sheeting joint was noted to be
extremely narrow to tight along the intersection of the
joint surface and the base of the east flank, and the sur-
face water was observed after the failure to flow along
the intersection and not into the east flank, the seepage
model assumed an “impermeable” boundary along the
east flank. Under these boundary conditions, the steady
state seepage analyses were conducted to assess how the
cleft water pressure was developed within the sheeting
joint at the time of failure.
Results of the analyses show a variation of the cleft
water pressure developed across the sheeting joint, typ-
ically increasing with joint depth from west to east,
with a maximum located at the landslide scar “nose”
along the east flank (Figure 8). This cleft water pres-
sure distribution was applied to the subsequent three-
dimensional back analysis in order to evaluate the most
likely operative range of the maximum cleft water pres-
sure developed within the sheeting joint at the time of
failure.
6.3. Basal and side frictional resistance
The wedge failure geometry defines a basal sliding plane
along the sheeting joint and a side release surface along
the east flank. The exposed sheeting joint formed in
columnar jointed tuff was smooth, planar and persis-
tent without any infilling materials. Under these joint
conditions, a typical range of shear strength param-
eters c = 0 kPa and φ  varying between 40° and 45°
was adopted for the purpose of stability analyses, which
is consistent with local rock slope engineering design
practice.
Frictional resistance at the east flank comprised the
resistance from soil (namely colluvium and completely
to highly decomposed tuff) and rock with columnar
jointing, although the latter was considered to have con-
tributed to most of the side frictional resistance to the
landslide. Post-landslide observations noted that the
corners forming two sides of the sub-vertical colum-
nar rock joints were often protruding into the landslide
scar, and that local shearing had occurred across these
corners in order to overcome the frictional resistance
to failure. Under this circumstance, the frictional resis-
tance in rock would likely be higher than that in an
intact rock joint (between 40° and 45°). Therefore, for
the purposes of the sensitivity analysis, a higher range
of c of 60 kPa to 65 kPa and φ  = 50° was adopted
for the moderately decomposed rock with columnar

(a)
Figure 8. Seepage analysis (steady state) at the time of failure. (a) Assumptions for seepage analysis (steady-state); (b) cleft water
pressure distribution developed across the sheeting joint at the source area.
jointing, reflecting the additional resistance generated
due to the local shearing of the rock columns. Typi-
cal shear parameters for soils [4] were adopted for the
frictional resistance of the soil part in the east flank.
6.4. Slope stability findings
Stability analyses were carried out to back-calculate the
likely range of cleft water pressure development on the
failure surface at the time of failure for the operative
shear strength parameters for sheeting joint (c = 0 kPa
and φ  = 40° and 45°) and for columnar jointed rock
(c = 60 kPa to 65 kPa and φ  adopted at 50°).
The results of the back analyses are presented in
Figure 9. The results indicate that for the likely range
of the shear strength parameters for both the sheeting
joint and rock with columnar jointing, a maximum cleft
water pressure between 33 kPa and 43 kPa in the sheet-
ing joint would have been sufficient for the failure to
occur (i.e. FoS = 1).
7. Diagnosis of probable mechanism and
causes of the failure
The landslide was a translational rockslide with a basal
failure surface along an adversely-oriented and persis-
tent sheeting joint within tuff. The failure was probably
rain-induced in view of the close correlation between
HKIE TRANSACTIONS 109
(b)
the landslide occurrence and the intense rainfall. Direct
water ingress into the sheeting joint probably occurred
during the rainstorm via the ephemeral drainage line
at the west flank, where the sheeting joint was exposed
and likely open due to stress relief. Following the fail-
ure, the sheeting joint intersection along the base of the
east flank was observed to be extremely narrow to tight
with surface water flowing along the intersection and
not into the east flank. This suggests that water flow
within the joint into the east flank was impeded and
that cleft water pressure would have developed increas-
ing with depth towards the east flank during the intense
rainfall, causing the reduction of shear strength along
the sheeting joint, and triggered the failure. A convex
break-in-slope traversing the hillside below the source
area allowed the pre-failure sheeting joint to daylight
and facilitated detachment.
This type and scale of failure is unusual and is con-
sidered to be the result of an “atypical” setting, where a
combination of several unfavourable contributory fac-
tors have acted at this specific location. These include
(1) presence of a planar, persistent and adversely-
oriented sheeting joint near the ground surface defin-
ing the depth and scale of failure; (2) presence of
ephemeral drainage line facilitating direct water ingress
into the sheeting joint at the west flank; and (3) presence
of a break-in-slope associated with a local shear zone
allowing the sheeting joint to daylight.
110 D O K LO ET AL.
(a)
Colluvium Grade IV/V Tuff Grade III Tuff
The source area
Failure scar
Cleft water pressure
distribution obtained from
seepage analysis
(b)
c φ
c φ
φ
Figure 9. Results of back analyses of the landslide. (a) Geo-
logical model for stability analysis; (b) plot of shear strength
parameters corresponding to various cleft water pressures.
8. Potential for further large-scale instability
8.1. General
The loose materials on the basal failure plane and
those exposed on the main scarp that were suscepti-
ble to minor detachment were relatively small in vol-
ume. Three rows of prescriptive steel flexible barriers
were constructed to mitigate the risk of potential minor
detachment of the loose materials [5]. The potential of
further large-scale instability in the hillside was exam-
ined assuming a similar failure mechanism with the
basal failure plane continuing above the main scarp and
into the east flank (Figure 10).
8.2. Ground investigation
Ground investigation was considered necessary to look
for any field evidence indicating possible extension of
the sheeting joint, and thus a potential failure surface,
into the hillside. Access difficulties, and site and time
constraints precluded the use of conventional drill rigs.
However, given the limited drilling depth and quality
of samples obtained from the portable drill rigs, the
chance of having cores intercepting the possible exten-
sion of the underlying sheeting joint at great depths
and positive identification with confidence was con-
sidered not high. Therefore, the ground investigation
was limited to trial pit excavation and vegetation clear-
ance strips with the aim to look for possible evidence
of the presence of the sheeting joint in the adjacent
terrain.
Vegetation clearance strips were carried out 60 m
above the main scarp and 40 m adjacent to the east
flank, covering most of the potential areas of further
instability. Vegetation was cut down to expose the
ground surface so that any distress, such as tension
cracks or deformation manifested on the ground sur-
face could be observed. At about 20 m above the main
scarp, a 400 mm vertical step was found but with no
apparent lateral movement and the exposed soil was
weathered suggesting it to be a relict tension crack. A
trial pit was excavated to a depth of 3 m to investi-
gate the 400 mm vertical step. No evidence of any ten-
sion crack, disturbance or dilation could be observed
in the exposed soil faces below the step. No signif-
icant signs of distress could be observed within the
adjacent hillside areas. No rock outcrop was observed
above the source area and no evidence of daylight-
ing of the basal failure plane was observed outside the
source area.
8.3. Assessment
The assumption of extending the basal failure plane
into the adjacent hillside was considered conservative
as observations from the field inspections and ground
investigation found no signs of distress or deforma-
tion adjacent to the source area, which could indicate
movement along the projected sheeting joint extension.
Above the main scarp, no rock outcrop was observed
and no evidence of any daylighting joint could be
observed, suggesting that the basal failure plane might
have changed the orientation or discontinued the ups-
lope of the main scarp.
For the hillside adjacent to the east flank, the sheet-
ing joint is dipping relatively steep into the east flank
and the depth of the overburden increases rapidly east-
wards. Consequently, the degree of weathering along
the joint would likely be less and the shear strength
be higher across the joint. Also, the sheeting joint is
extremely narrow to tight along the intersection of the
joint surface and the base of the east flank, and sur-
face water was observed to flow along the intersection
and not into the east flank, suggesting the development
of cleft water pressure in the east flank with a similar
magnitude as the failed portion is unlikely. The rock
outcrop observed to the east of the source area near
the break-in-slope indicates that the orientation of the
sheeting joint inside the east flank changes direction,
with the dip angle reducing to between 10° and 15°. This
implies the orientation of the basal plane is becoming
less adverse.
 HKIE TRANSACTIONS 111

Potential
areas of
further
large-scale
instability

Projected sheeting
joint extension

Legend:
Source area of
the landslide

Figure 10. Potential areas of further large-scale instability.

Observations from 33 other natural terrain land-
slides that occurred on 21 May 2016 revealed that none
of them had any significant structural control and they
were typically shallow failures within the regolith. Thus,
the atypical setting of the landslide resulting in the
large-scale failure was considered to be unusual and
localised. The adjacent hillside is deemed to be less sus-
ceptible to large-scale failure after the landslide. The
above findings have been augmented with engineering
analyses in the following Sections.
8.4. Supplementary engineering analyses
8.4.1. General
The observations from field inspections and ground
investigation revealed that the adjacent hillside is
deemed to be less susceptible to large-scale failure after
the landslide. Engineering analyses were conducted to
evaluate the change of the overall factor of safety (FoS)
of the hillside before and after the landslide to supple-
ment the findings from field observations. The engi-
neering analyses have been carried out assuming the
sheeting joint extending with a similar orientation into
the adjacent terrain which represents a worst-case sce-
nario. The hillside above the main scarp was selected for
the analyses as it was considered more critical than the
east flank in view of the increased overburden and shear
strength as well as the lower likelihood of development
of cleft water pressure in the east flank as detailed in
Section 8.3.
With the assumption of large-scale failure, three pre-
scribed slip surfaces (i.e. S1, S2 and S3), in pan-shape
as shown in Figures 11 and 12, with the basal slid-
ing plane principally along the sheeting joint extension,
were employed in the stability analyses. For simplicity,
elliptical slip surfaces on plan with a planar side face
along the perimeter of the slips with similar dip to that
exposed on the east flank of the landslide were adopted.
The hillside above the failure was assumed to have
a similar geological profile inferred from the exposed
landslide scar and similar material properties adopted
in the back analyses of the landslide (Section 6). For the
sake of simplicity, only the case with cohesion intercept
of rock with columnar jointing of 60 kPa was consid-
ered.
The cleft water pressure distribution due to direct
water ingress obtained from seepage analysis was
applied to the source area, and a nominal water pres-
sure on the hillside above the main scarp was applied
to account for any limited groundwater pressure that
could develop at the sheeting joint due to direct infiltra-
tion (Figure 11) to simulate the pre-landslide ground-
water condition. For the post-landslide scenario, as no
rock outcrop or evidence of any daylighting joint could
be observed at the hillside above the main scarp, direct
water ingress into the sheeting joint is unlikely. There-
fore, only a nominal water pressure on the hillside above
the main scarp was applied to account for any limited
groundwater pressure that could develop at the sheeting
joint due to direct infiltration (Figure 12).

8.4.2. Analytical model 8.4.3. Summary of results

Owing to the three-dimensional nature of the slope sta- The analytical model together with the material prop-
bility problem, the limit equilibrium three-dimensional erties, groundwater conditions and prescribed failure
slope stability programme described earlier was adopted slip surfaces described above, were utilised in the three-
for analyses. dimensional slope stability assessment to compute the
112 D O K LO ET AL.

Colluvium Grade IV/V Tuff Grade III Tuff

S1
S2
S1
S3
The source area
S2

S3
Nominal pore water
pressure (10 kPa)
S1, S2 & S3

Section A-A
Umax
Assumed cleft water pressure based on the
The source area results of seepage analysis and back analysis
(Umax = 33 kPa and 37 kPa for φ = 40° and
45° respectively)

Figure 11. Pre-landslide condition.

Colluvium Grade IV/V Tuff Grade III Tuff

S1 S1
S2

S2 S3
The source area
S3

Nominal pore water

S1, S2 & S3
pressure (10 kPa)

Section A -A
The source area

Figure 12. Post-landslide condition.

Table 1. Results of stability analyses.
Factor of safety for slip no.
φ = 40° (friction angle for sheeting joint) S1
Pre-landslide condition 1.79
Post-landslide condition 1.68
Factor of safety for slip no.
φ  = 45° (friction angle for sheeting joint) S1
Pre-landslide condition 1.88
Post-landslide condition 1.79
respective FoS with respect to potential large-scale fail-
ure of the adjacent hillside. The results indicate that
although the computed FoSs decrease slightly (by 4%
to 9%) when comparing stability conditions before and
after the landslide, all FoSs exceed unity (Table 1). The
hillside as a whole is deemed to be less susceptible to
large-scale failure after the landslide. The above find-
ings are consistent with that obtained from the field
inspections and the ground investigation as detailed in
Sections 8.2 and 8.3.
S2 S3
1.75 1.19 9. Conclusions
1.59 1.10
The landslide initiated as a structurally-controlled, and
translational rockslide along the planar and persistent
S2 S3 sheeting joint basal failure surface, and was probably
1.83 1.24 triggered by the intense rainstorm in the early morn-
1.70 1.19
ing of 21 May 2016. The rainstorm was the most severe
on record with respect to the short-duration rainfall
in the Sai Kung East Country Park area. Failure was
probably induced by direct water ingress from an adja-
cent drainage line into the sheeting joint at the west
flank of the source area, resulting in the development of
cleft water pressure within an adversely-oriented sheet-
ing joint in the underlying tuff rock mass. A narrow
convex break-in-slope laterally traversing across the
hillside facilitated daylighting of the sheeting joint and
kinematic feasibility of failure.

All the 33 natural terrain landslides that occurred
in the vicinity of Sai Kung Sai Wan Road on the
same morning were “typical” shallow landslides within
the regolith, and with a maximum volume of 300 m3 .
In addition, none of the historical landslides identi-
fied in the vicinity of Sai Kung Sai Wan Road appear
to have been structurally controlled. Thus, within
the Sai Kung Sai Wan Road area, the landslide is
unusual in terms of both its significant magnitude and
type, and is considered to have occurred due to a
number of setting-specific and “atypical” factors that
in combination resulted in the failure. These factors
include structural geology, geomorphology, hydrol-
ogy and hydrogeology. In this respect, the landslide
may be considered a low-frequency, large-magnitude
landslide and the surrounding hillside is not particu-
larly susceptible to similar events even during intense
rainfall.
The landslide investigation facilitated further under-
standing of the mechanisms of failure, setting and resid-
ual risk of large-magnitude, low-frequency landslides
in Hong Kong, which could be useful for handling sim-
ilar large-scale events in the future, especially where the
consequences are significant, and rapid evaluation of
residual risk is required.
Acknowledgments
This paper is published with the permissions of the
Head of Geotechnical Engineering Office and the Direc-
tor of Civil Engineering and Development of the HKSAR
Government.
Notes on contributors
Ir Dr Dominic O K Lo graduated from
The University College London in 1984
and was awarded the University College
London Exchange Postgraduate Schol-
arship to study at the University of Illi-
nois where he received an M.Sc. and a
Ph.D. degree. He was the first recipient
of the Ralph B Peck Fellowship awarded
by the University of Illinois in 1987.
He worked in the New Jersey Office of Golder Associates
Inc. prior to joining the Geotechnical Engineering Office
(GEO) of the Civil Engineering and Development Depart-
ment (CEDD), where he conducted landslide investigation,
research and development in piling, quantitative risk assess-
ment, and design methodology for landslide debris-resistant
barriers. He is currently the Chief Geotechnical Engineer
of the Landslip Preventive Measures Division 1 and leads
a team of professional and technical staff in the manage-
ment of the landslip prevention and mitigation studies and
works, the selection and management of consultancies for
the Landslip Prevention and Mitigation Programme, and in
the implementation of the systematic landslide investigation
programme.
HKIE TRANSACTIONS 113
Ir Rachel H C Law obtained her BEng
degree from The University of Hong
Kong and her master degree from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(MIT). She is the winner of the 2012
HKIE Fugro Prize. She joined the GEO,
CEDD in 2001 and was responsible for
research and development studies on
landslides and slope safety for the past
few years. Currently, she is a Senior Geotechnical Engineer in
the Landslip Preventive Measures Division 1 of the GEO, and
leads a team of professional and technical staff in managing
a number of landslide investigation consultancies and pro-
viding technical direction in undertaking the examination of
all reported landslides in the territory and in-depth landslide
studies of selected significant landslides. Other areas of her
recent work include slope design and geotechnical checking.
Ir Roland C T Wai obtained his BEng
degree in civil engineering and his
M.Sc. degree in geotechnical engineer-
ing from The University of Hong Kong
in 2005 and 2010 respectively. He has a
wide range of geotechnical experience,
through local and overseas projects, in
slope engineering, deep excavation, site
formation and foundation. He joined the
GEO, CEDD in 2012 and was responsible for undertaking
landslide studies, diagnosis of slope performance, manage-
ment of landslide investigation consultancies and provision
of geotechnical advisory services.
Ir Dr Axel K L Ng obtained his Ph.D.
in geotechnical engineering at The Uni-
versity of Sydney. He has over 25
years of geotechnical experience, through
projects in Hong Kong and other parts
of Asia; in slope engineering, deep exca-
vation, site formation, tunnel, reclama-
tion, foundation and landfill. His expe-
rience in landslide investigation started
in 2005. At present, he is the Project Manager of the
ongoing Landslide Investigation Consultancy for which
he oversees the investigations of landslides in Kowloon
and the New Territories between 2016 and 2018. He is
currently an Executive Director of AECOM Asia Com-
pany Limited and has been a member of the Interna-
tional Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engi-
neering (ISSMGE) Technical Committee on Geotechnical
Infrastructure.
Steven J Williamson is a Technical
Director of AECOM Asia Company
Limited with over 25 years’ experience
in the fields of engineering geology and
geotechnical engineering. He is a Char-
tered Engineer and Chartered Geologist,
and leads a team of professional and
technical staff in undertaking a variety of
geotechnical works including geohazard
and risk assessment both in Hong Kong and overseas. With
his extensive experience in landslide investigation going back
to 1999, he has been a main contributor to several notable
Landslide Investigations in Hong Kong.
114 D O K LO ET AL.
Ir Jason K S Lee is an Associate of
AECOM Asia Company Limited and
has been working in the field of geotech-
nical engineering for more than 20 years.
Particularly, he has extensive experi-
ence in landslide investigation, stability
assessment of slopes and slope works
design. He is currently the Project Co-
ordinator of the 2016–2018 Landslide
Investigation Consultancy (Kowloon and New Territories)
and leads a team dealing with landslide inspection, exami-
nation and overall review of landslides.
Ir Dr Y M Cheng has worked on many
underground constructions, rock and
soft-ground tunnelling for MTR Corpo-
ration, submerged tunnel construction
for Eastern Harbour Crossing (EHC)
design of Island Eastern Corridor (IEC)
links, various geotechnical works and
marine works before joining The Hong
Kong Polytechnic University. Currently,
he is the editor of HKIE Transactions and the international
journal Computers and Geotechnics, as well as a member
of several engineering and educational committees. He has
published 168 papers and seven books, and has received
best-paper awards from HKIE Transactions and Computers
and Geotechnics. Currently, his research work is related to
slope stability analysis, pile driving analysis, plasticity the-
ory, innovative soil nail, distinct element analysis, Internet of
Things (IOT) monitoring and cloud computing in geotech-
nical works. Based on the research work, several patent
programmes have been developed, namely SLOPE 2000,
SLOPE3D, GeoSuite, PLATE, SEEP and other programmes.
Besides research works, he has also provided consultancy
advice to large-scale and difficult engineering works in Hong
Kong, Macau, Australia, Egypt, European countries and
the Mainland China and has worked with research insti-
tutes/universities in Europe and the Mainland China consul-
tancy firms, and contractors as well as the HKSAR and Macau
Government.
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