THE INQUEST into the tragic death of up – and – coming Warrington four – piece, Viola Beach and their manager, is due to begin today.

Singer Kris Leonard, 20; guitarist River Reeves, 19; drummer Jack Dakin, 19; bass player Tomas Lowe, 27, and Manager Craig Tarry, 32,were killed in a car crash in Sweden in February this year.

It is thought that the car crashed through a gap in a motorway bridge that had opened for a ship.

The band were in Sweden performing at the Where’s the Music festival near Stockholm.

At the opening of the inquest in March it was confirmed that the driver of the hire car had no traces of alcohol or drugs in their blood.

Stockholm Police spokeswoman, Carena Skagerlind, said: “We can confirm that the very preliminary post mortem results show that the driver of the car had no trace of alcohol or drugs in the blood.”

The death of the promising new band and their manager sparked an out pour of grief across the local community and national music lovers.

A tribute concert at Warrington Parr Hall saw appearances and tributes from Courteeners frontman, Liam Fray, The Kooks and Blossoms, who were also on tour with Viola Beach when the accident happened.

Coldplay also paid tribute to the band during their Glastonbury set in Summer, giving ‘Boys That Sing’ a posthumous appearance on the iconic pyramid stage.

The band’s self – titled debut album, which was curated by their families and friends, also reached number one in August this year.

The inquest is to take place today at Warrington Coroners Court.

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