In act 4 scene 7, the Queen reports that Ophelia has drowned. While it seems that initially this began as an accident (she was in a willow tree overhanging a brook and decorating it with flowers when the branch snapped and fell into the water), it seems that her recent madness creates a suicidal motivation for the accident. While her clothes held her up for a while:
She chaunted snatches of old lauds,As one incapable of her own distress,Or like a creature native and induedUnto that element; but long it could not beTill that her garments, heavy with their drink, Pull'd the poor wretch from her melodious layTo muddy death. (7.7.195–201)
Upon hearing the news, Laertes doesn't really place the blame on anyone, simply stating that he will not cry because sister has already had enough water.
Act 5, scene 1, is Ophelia's burial scene, and Hamlet is completely unaware of her tragedy until Laertes shows up and refers to "[his] sister" in a conversation with the priest. Hamlet becomes distraught watching his mother scattering flowers onto the grave and then sees Laertes leap towards Ophelia's grave for one final embrace. Hamlet decides to jump into the grave himself, which creates quite a conflict between the two men.
It is at this point that Hamlet declares, "I loved Ophelia. Forty thousand brothers / Could not, with all their quantity of love / Make up my sum." Is this character development? That's debatable. Hamlet has feigned madness up to this point and has rejected and insulted Ophelia time after time, undoubtedly leading to her madness. But are these words reflective of a Hamlet who has seen the error of his ways and is emerging with clarity toward his goal of killing Claudius? Or is he simply stricken with grief for Ophelia's tragedy and is spouting more words without meaning? There is textual evidence for both.
Laertes works more under the direction of Claudius than out of revenge for Ophelia. He is aware of the poisonous rapiers with which they fight, and he thus knows that he is dying when Hamlet grabs the "wrong" instrument and wounds him. Before the fight, both Hamlet and Laertes offer hospitable exchanges of forgiveness and Ophelia is never specifically mentioned.
In short, the death of Ophelia is not directly linked to the ensuing fight which is (deceptively) organized by Claudius. Hamlet and Laertes have been at odds for much of the play over both Hamlet's treatment of Ophelia and because of Hamlet's murder of Polonius, but Ophelia's death near the end is presented as almost an aside. She is used as everyone's pawn during the play; while her death brings sadness to those who loved her most, even in death she doesn't seem to fuel enough passion that would lead to revenge.
Ophelia's death is a major plot point in Hamlet. It must be remembered that her death could be seen as partially Hamlet's fault: she goes mad after Hamlet kills Polonious and this madness leads to her accidental drowning/suicide. Ophelia's brother Laertes is heartbroken by her death, insisting she be buried in sacred ground despite the dubious nature of her end, and he grows to hate Hamlet even more. While Laertes was already furious because Hamlet's murdered his dad, Hamlet's hand in Ophelia's demise is the final straw. Laertes conspires with Claudius to murder Hamlet in a duel, which is the climax of the play. So in terms of how it leads to the final tragedy of the play (i.e., everyone dying during the duel gone wrong), Ophelia's death is the catalyst.
As for how Ophelia's death affects Hamlet's character development, the answer is more ambiguous. Audiences and scholars are divided on the nature of Hamlet's feelings for Ophelia: namely, did he love her? He could have loved her before the play began, then fallen out of love with her after his father died. He could have loved her until he learned she was working with Claudius and Polonius to spy on him. Or he could have remained in love with her the entire time, the disdainful "get thee to a nunnery" speech intended to be genuine advice for how to live pure in a corrupt world that Hamlet only finds more and more disgusting.
But let's examine Hamlet's conduct at her funeral: he is shocked when he learns who is being buried and throws himself into her grave with protestations of love. However, he doesn't throw himself into the grave until after Laertes does so and examining his exaggerated declarations of romantic grief, one might argue Hamlet is simply trying to outdo Laertes or possibly already going insane. His conduct in the next scene, where he mocks Osric in a light manner, undercut the idea that Hamlet is grieving Ophelia or that he feels much, if any, guilt over his part in her demise. He also never mentions Ophelia again after the funeral. These things do not necessarily mean that Hamlet doesn't care; he could be repressing his grief to focus ever more intently on his revenge mission.
So, there are two possible ways to interpret Hamlet's behavior: A) He represses what he feels about Ophelia. While he never speaks of her again after her burial, her death drives him further into madness and his own desire to die. B) Hamlet never cared/fell out of love with Ophelia and had no reaction to her dying at all.
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