The paper describes the failure and reconstruction of an 80 ft. high, 8 acre tailings impoundment in Western North Carolina. The darn was constructed using the upstream method of construction. The coarse fraction of the tailings was used as embankment construction materials; these consisted of coarse to fine sands. The fine fraction tailings consisted of low density, relatively low plasticity, layered fine sands and fine sandy silts with frequent inter bedding of micaceous silty clays. Although a 20.0 ft. section of the darn failed, the fine saturated tailings did not liquefy but rather slumped into the breach. Reconstruction was complicated because there was no convenient access to the toe of the darn. Since this darn had been previously studied and found to be marginally stable, the failure reinforces the need for the engineer to keep accurate records of telephone conversations and other correspondence to help protect himself from having any liability in the failure
