Image copyright EPA Image caption The labels of the contaminated lotion said the product contained ethyl alcohol rather than deadly methanol 
 
 The number of people in Russia who have died as a result of drinking bath oil has risen from 49 to at least 58, local media has reported. 
 
 Most of the 37 other people who became ill are still being treated, with some in a serious condition. 
 
 The highly toxic hawthorn-scented liquid was consumed as if it were safe alcohol, according to Russia's Investigative Committee. 
 
 But it contained poisonous methanol, which can also cause blindness. 
 
 Image copyright EPA Image caption Police in Irkutsk have been checking private stores to ensure they are not selling poisonous lotions 
 
 Image copyright EPA Image caption This boxed package of hawthorn bath essence was confiscated during an operation checking all private stores selling alcohol in Irkutsk 
 
 The Siberian Times said the mass poisoning in Irkutsk "is now the worst such case in modern Russian history". 
 
 Health minister Oleg Yaroshenko said that almost half of those still being treated are not expected to live and were in a very serious condition. 
 
 "They came to [the] doctors too late.... Only a miracle can save them," he was quoted by The Siberian Times as saying. 
 
 The paper said that a doctor and a kindergarten teacher are among the victims and that many of those who died were discovered in their homes because they did not have sufficient time to call an ambulance. 
 
 Most of the victims are reported to be aged between 35 and 50. 
 
 One 33-year-old survivor said that he only drank a small amount of the lotion but still woke up blind the following morning. 
 
 Household products are seen by some as a cheap alternative to alcohol across the former Soviet Union. 
 
 Bottles with the lotion normally carry warnings stating they are not to be consumed, but correspondents say that the labels in this case said that the product contained ethyl alcohol rather than deadly methanol. 
 
 Analysts say up to 12 million Russians drink cheap surrogate alcohol, including perfume, after shave, anti-freeze and window cleaner. Two years of Western economic sanctions have made the situation worse. 
 
 Police earlier uncovered an illicit workshop where the lotion was being made, and arrested its owners. ||||| Nearly 50 people died recently in a Siberian city after they drank bath oil as a substitute for alcohol. But why was the substance so deadly? 
 
 Authorities in Irkutsk, the sixth-largest city in Russia, declared a state of emergency today (Dec. 19) after at least 49 people died from drinking the apparently mislabeled bath oil, according to the Washington Post. Another 15 people were hospitalized and are in critical condition. 
 
 The label on the bath oil said it contained ethanol, and people drank the product as a cheap alternative to alcohol, which is a common practice in Russia, the Post reported. However, authorities said that the bath oil product actually contained methanol — which is a chemical in antifreeze. 
 
 Methanol is harmful because of what happens when the body breaks it down. When people consume methanol, the body metabolizes it first into formaldehyde, and then into a compound called formic acid, which is highly toxic to cells, according to the American Academy of Clinical Toxicology. The breakdown of formic acid is slow, and so it can accumulate in the body. 
 
 Methanol poisoning can cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, breathing problems, dizziness, blindness and coma, according to the National Institutes of Health. As little as 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) of methanol can kill a person, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [7 Ways Alcohol Affects Your Health] 
 
 There are antidotes to reverse the effects of methanol, including fomepizole or ethanol, the NIH said on its website. But whether a person recovers after ingesting methanol depends on how much the individual swallowed and how soon he or she received medical care, the NIH said. In people who survive, blindness is common, the agency said. 
 
 A minute level of methanol is found in most alcoholic drinks, and such levels are safe. But if alcohol is not properly distilled, methanol levels can be dangerously high, according to a report on a case of methanol poisoning that the CDC issued earlier this year. 
 
 Methanol is colorless and smells like alcohol, and it is sometimes deliberately added to illegal alcohol drinks in order to strengthen them or make them stretch further, according to the National Health Service in the United Kingdom. 
 
 Police in Irkutsk said that they have found a workshop where the bath oil was being made, along with bootleg vodka, according to Reuters. Officials have confiscated about 500 liters of bath oil and other liquid from stores in the area. 
 
 Original article on Live Science. ||||| 'Such a heavy condition is because they came to doctors too late and received a large dose of the surrogate (alcohol).' Picture: Vesti.Irkutsk 
 
 The poisoning after drinking bath lotion or bath oil, masquerading as a safe alcoholic drink called Hawthorn, is now the worst such case in modern Russian history. 
 
 With 55 dead, Irkutsk region health minister Oleg Yaroshenko said that almost half of those who are still alive have almost no chances of survival. 13 are in a very hard condition and the chances of survival are practically nil,' he said. 
 
 'Such a heavy condition is because they came to doctors too late and received a large dose of the surrogate (alcohol). Only a miracle can save them.' 
 
 'I called to ambulance, and they brought me to hospital. Here I found out what is going on in the city.' Picture: Vesti.Irkutsk, KP 
 
 Some 7 people have been detained in connection with the poisoning. In addition to the dodgy bath lotion, black marketeers behind the poisonous alcohol were producing several brands of vodka. 
 
 People aged 25 to 62 were stuck down by the poisoning. Almost half are women. The victims included a doctor and a kindergarten teacher, while 24 bodies were found in homes - people who had no time to call an ambulance. 
 
 Survivor Alexei, 33, said: 'I met with my old friends, and we decided to drink a bit. My mates bought vodka, I do not remember the label. The taste seemed to me strange, bitter. I drank only one shot and then went home. 
 
 In addition to the dodgy bath lotion, black marketeers behind the poisonous alcohol were producing several brands of vodka. Pictures: Channel 1, Life 
 
 'We had a supper, then I played with my child and went to sleep. In the morning I was blind. I could not even see what is in my cell-phone. I wanted to get up, but my legs did not obey. I'm a doctor by education, so I quickly understood that I had been poisoned. 
 
 'I called to ambulance, and they brought me to hospital. Here I found out what is going on in the city. Hope these bastards will be found!'
– "They came to doctors too late. … Only a miracle can save them." Those were the words to the Siberian Times from the Irkutsk region's health minister regarding those sickened from ingesting a deadly bath oil, with dozens already dead from the mass poisoning—said to be the "worst such case in modern Russian history." The BBC reports at least 58 have died, per local media, and notes the death toll is expected to rise, as many of the more than three dozen poisoned are in serious condition. The concoction that caused the deaths was a black-market mixture promoted as a safe, hawthorn-scented alcoholic beverage, with a label that said it contained ethyl alcohol, which is OK to consume. However, it actually was made with methanol, which Live Science notes is a harmful chemical used in antifreeze that (besides death) can also cause a slew of other medical problems, including blindness. A market worker tells Reuters she usually uses the oil to remove grease and remnants of old price tags still stuck on surfaces. The BBC—which notes millions of cash-strapped people in Russia often resort to drinking cheap "surrogate" booze, including perfume and window cleaner—says the owners of the shop where the bath oil was made have been arrested. (Beer wasn't officially considered alcohol in Russia until a few years ago.)