Wall collapses at Art Group development site on Northbourne Avenue, Dickson

Dickson residents were woken by loud bangs and bright flashes of light in the early hours of Tuesday morning when part of an excavation pit behind their properties collapsed.

The shoring wall - a temporary structure used for support in excavation sites - collapsed and took some backyards and power lines down with it.

The incident occurred at the construction site for Art Group's Calypso apartments, part of the Soho precinct on Northbourne Avenue.

A WorkSafe ACT spokesperson said there had been no reports of injuries.

Art Group released a statement on Tuesday evening confirming the developer was liaising with authorities and assisting affected residents.

Access Canberra issued a stop-work notice for the site on Tuesday and will prepare an emergency rectification order.

A senior engineer from Access Canberra will engage with similar large construction sites in the coming weeks "to ensure controls are in place to manage excavation safety".

This will include conducting inspections across ACT building sites.

WorkSafe ACT inspectors were seen talking with residents on Lowrie Street around midday on Tuesday and exclusion zones have been set up in some backyards.

One resident, who did not want to be named, said they were woken about 1.30am by a loud noise that sounded like a clap of thunder.

They also saw a bright light outside the window believed to have been caused by falling power lines.

Another reported feeling the house trembling before hearing the collapse.

Evoenergy reported a power outage in Dickson at 2.46am on Tuesday affecting 50 homes.

Some residents had lost plants and large chunks of their backyards to the excavation pit, while another resident's entire shed had fallen in.

Art Group purchased the 2.6-hectare site, once home to Dickson Towers and Karuah public housing blocks, in 2016 for $37 million.

It is the second wall collapse to happen in Canberra in recent months.

In August, a retaining wall collapsed at a Geocon work site in Phillip, bringing down hundreds of tonnes of dirt and concrete and forcing the closure of one of Woden's largest carparks.

Ground subsidence as a result of Canberra's recent heavy rainfall was suspected to be the cause for the Phillip collapse.

A statement from Access Canberra on Tuesday said developers had been warned about upcoming wet weather.

Nick Lhuede, construction occupations registrar at Access Canberra, recently wrote to all construction licensees and advised them to ensure site safety, including around excavation and shoring.

"I am calling on builders and developers to ensure that they have appropriate controls and structures in place for large scale and deep excavations," he said.

Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union ACT secretary Zach Smith was made aware of the collapse and said it was lucky no one was injured.

"This easily could have happened during the day when workers were on site. And it would have been a tragedy," he said.

Mr Smith said heavy rain should not cause excavation collapses.

"Excavation collapses like this are not normal. Yet in Canberra we've now seen two in as many months," he said.

Sustainable Building and Construction Minister Rebecca Vassarotti said she was shocked to see the images of the wall collapse.

"This is a really serious incident and Canberrans have a right to be concerned," she said.

Ms Vassarotti said the incident highlights the need for engineer registration and developer licensing.

"It is vital that everyone involved in significant construction works are suitably qualified and that the community has confidence that such large works meet safety and building quality standards," she said.

Mr Smith agreed, but said trade licensing should also be a priority.

The ACT Government will table legislation for an engineer registration scheme in the Assembly next month.

It will also introduce a public discussion paper around a developer licencing scheme in the coming months.

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