Mining is a major element of development and wealth, and the abandonment of underground mines was considered without visible consequences accept social and economical consequences. Whatever, brutal collapse affect the surface and damage the buildings and infrastructure. It is essential to have the tools for predicting damage of these collapses on surface structures. The prediction of the subsidence is based on empirical and more recently numerical methods. The prediction of the consequences of the collapse depends on the amplitude of subsidence and the characteristics of structures on the surface. The first part of this article presents a synthesis of the different methods (empirical, numerical and hybrid) prediction of subsidence in green land (without structure) and the main parameters (geometric, Geotechnical) to ensure accurate and reliable subsidence prediction. Back analysis of the empirical methods was discussed (Proust 1964 and NCB, 1975) for underground coal and iron mines during and after mining period (France). In the second part of the paper; it will be question of the assessment of damage to structures. We will present two approaches: the first does not consider the characteristics of the building, and only the settings of the subsidence (slope, deformation, curvature) to define a level of damage. This approach is seen as pessimistic by many experts. The second, approach is more recent, it takes into account the soil-structure interaction phenomena. The level of damage depends on the amplitude of subsidence and the characteristics of the frame (foundations, structures, etc.). A damage estimation procedure it will be also described in this article.
