Abstract: It is extremely significant for coal mining under water bodies and water conservation mining to research overburden failure and the height of permeable fractured zone. The processes of overburden failure transfer were analyzed, which could be divided into transmission development stage and transmission termination stage. Through theoretical analysis, mechanical model of strata suspended integrity and overhanging stability were established. The limited suspension distance and overhang distance of each stratum were proposed to judge the damage of each layer. A new theoretical method to predict the development height of permeable fractured zone was put forward. The project example was compared with the field data. The results show that the height of permeable fractured zone by this theorical method(158.8 m) is consistent with the measured data(150-170 m), verifying its rationality.