Abstract: Faults are the low intensity belt in rockmass and can often be activated by excavation.The experience indicates that fault activation may lead to strong deformation and destruction of mine workings.The theoretical and numerical analysis of the fault-induced deformation and destruction of mine workings shows that fault activation may augment the horizontal stress and shear stress of the shaft sidewall at the fault，and may destroy the shaft in serious case，which is different from the shaft failure caused by rock displacement without the existence of a fault.The excavation near a fault may lead to the fault activation，which is likely to cause or intensify the partial load on tunnels.When the tunnel axis is consistent with the fault strike and the vertical stress is the maximum principal stress，it is likely to lead to the tunnel rock cracking，collapse and other damages.Therefore，the research on fault activation-caused disasters can be helpful to underground engineering design，construction and safety forecasting for engineering facilities.

Key words: Fault effect, Underground excavation, Rockmass movement, Fault activation, Tunnel destruction