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Artist News
Dolores O’Riordan’s death a “tragic accident”, coroner confirms
By Chris Cooke | Published on Friday 7 September 2018
Dolores O’Riordan of The Cranberries died from drowning after heavy drinking, a coroner confirmed yesterday at the conclusion of an investigation into the musician’s death.
O’Riordan was in London for a recording session when she died in January. No cause of death was revealed at the time, but – according to the BBC – a policewoman who attended the scene told the coroner’s court that “I saw Mrs O’Riordan submerged in the bath with her nose and mouth fully under the water”.
There was no evidence of self-harm or other injuries and, although O’Riordan had a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, the court was told that she had responded well to treatment and was in good spirits in the days leading up to her passing. Toxicology tests confirmed that she had been drinking heavily on the night she died and the coroner therefore concluded that her death was a “tragic accident”.
Following the hearing, O’Riordan’s former bandmates said in a statement: “On January 15th 2018 we lost our dear friend and bandmate Dolores O’Riordan. Today we continue to struggle to come to terms with what happened. Our heartfelt condolences go out to Dolores’s children and her family and our thoughts are with them today”.
“Dolores will live on eternally in her music”, they added. “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 our fans for their outpouring of messages and their continued support during this very difficult time”.