The Cranberries' Dolores O'Riordan Died By Drowning, Finds Inquest

6 September 2018, 13:36 | Updated: 6 September 2018, 16:25

The band released a statement after a court heard the Irish singer died as a result of a "tragic accident" due to alcohol intoxication.

The cause of death of Dolores O'Riordan - who tragically lost her life on 15 January this year - has been confirmed.

As BBC News reports, inquest at Westiminster Coroner's Court heard that The Cranberries frontwoman died by drowning due to alcohol intoxication.

The coroner told the court that the Irish singer died as a result of a "tragic accident," after drinking an excessive amount of alcohol.

The outlet adds: "The inquest heard that there were empty bottles in the room - five miniature bottles and a bottle of champagne - as well as containers of prescription drugs with a quantity of tablets in each container."

The inquest was told that O'Riordan had no injuries or any evidence of self harm.

The Cranberries have since released a statement revealing they are still struggling to come to terms with what happened.

They also thanked the fans for their "outpouring of messages" and support and asked for their "privacy to be respected" at this time.

See their full message here:

Dolores O'Riordan joined The Cranberries in 1990 after replacing their lead singer Niall Quinn.

The band were most known for their hits Zombie and Linger.

The Cranberries - Zombie

Their debut album, Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We? was released in March 1993 and made Number 1 in the Irish and UK charts.

Their second album, No Need To Argue, from 1994, went seven times platinum in the US.

1995 saw the band follow in the footsteps of Bob Dylan, Nirvana and Rod Stewart to take part in MTV Unplugged.

Zombie - Cranberries MTV Unplugged

The band's last studio effort, Roses, was released in 2012, but they released a compilation of acoustic versions of their hits out in 2017, titled Something Else.In recent years, Dolores also fronted a band called D.A.R.K. and was in working on an unknown project at the time of her death.

The Salvation singer split from her husband Don - the former tour manager for Duran Duran - in 2014 after 20 years together. 

They share three children, Taylor, 20, Molly, 16, and Dakota, 12.

The singer was raised and remained a Catholic, and met the late Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, while also performing at the Vatican on several occasions.