On January 15, the world lost an incredible musician when the lead singer of The Cranberries passed away at 46 years old.
Known for their chart-topping hits, "Zombie," "Linger," and "Dreams," Dolores O'Riordan lead the Irish rock band to international fame in the early 90s, cementing their status as an award-winning band.
When O'Riordan's death was announced, fans anxiously awaited for her cause of death to be revealed, and on September 6, Coroner Shirley Radcliffe ruled her death as a "tragic accident."
"Dolores O'Riordan was a hugely successful singer with a very supportive family and children; clearly much loved by many people," Radcliffe said at the inquest.
"She had a shortish history of bipolar which she sought treatment for but it would seem she had no significant relapse of mental health."
"But there was an ongoing problem with intermittent alcohol misuse. On January 15 she was found deceased in her hotel room."
"There was no evidence that this [was] anything other than an accident. There was no evidence of intention, it seems it was nothing but a solely a tragic accident."
Prior to the inquest, authorities stated O'Riordan didn't leave a suicide note, and there was no evidence of self-harm.
According to the BBC, O'Riordan died by drowning due to excessive alcohol consumption, and was found submerged in a bathtub, fully clothed in her pajamas, in her room at London's Hilton Park Lane hotel.
"I saw Mrs. O'Riordan submerged in the bath with her nose and mouth fully under the water," PC Natalie Smart, who attended the scene, told the inquest.
During the hearing, it was revealed the mother-of-three had been drinking heavily, and had a blood alcohol level that was four times over the legal driving limit.
Although toxicology reports only showed "therapeutic" amounts of medication in her blood, there were five miniature bottles of liquor and a bottle of champagne were found empty, along with containers filled with prescription drugs in her hotel room.
O'Riordan was known to have a history with alcohol abuse, with her psychiatrist, Seamus O'Ceallaigh saying, "There was (alcohol abuse) although Dolores had maintained sobriety over prolonged periods," adding that he last saw the "Salvation" singer on January 9, who was in good spirits.
Following the results of the inquest, her band mates, Noel Hogan, Fergal Lawler and Mike Hogan, said:
"On January 15th 2018 we lost our dear friend and band mate Dolores O'Riordan.
Today we continue to struggle to come to terms with what happened.
Our heartfelt condolences go out to Dolores' children and her family and our thoughts are with them today.
Dolores will live on eternally in her music. To see how much of a positive impact she had on people's lives has been a source of great comfort to us.
We'd like to say thank you to all of our fans for the outpouring of messages and their continued support during this very difficult time.
We request, please, for our privacy to be respected at this time."
[H/T: BBC, Daily Mail]
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