In this paper, a failed soil-nailed fill slope was studied. The slope is about 12.0m high with an average angle of 43°. It mainly comprises fill and highly to moderately decomposed granite. Soil nails plus a grillage system were used to stabilize the upper 7.0 m of the slope and a protective masonry wall was used to retain its lower 5.0 m. During the construction, part of the slope failed after a heavy rainstorm. The grillage system was damaged and a large number of cracks were found at the back of the slope. Stability analyses for the slope were conducted by varying the suction to simulate the contribution of the matric suction to the shear strength in the dry and wet states. It is concluded that the failure is mainly due to the loss of matric suction.
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