Russians die of alcohol poisoning after drinking bath lotion

At least 41 people have died of alcohol poisoning in a Siberian city after drinking bath lotion.

Russian health authorities said the lotion contained methanol, a toxic substance used in anti-freeze.

Fifty-seven people were taken to hospital in the Siberian city of Irkutsk, according to Russian investigators. The others are a serious condition.

Officials said the bottles of lotion were clearly marked with warnings that they were not for internal use, but the mixture was nonetheless "consumed like alcohol".

Investigators have been sent from Moscow and sale of all liquids containing spirits not meant for human consumption has been banned in the region.

Two people have been arrested on suspicion of distributing the bath oil. 

It was unclear whether those selling the product were marketing it as a cheaper substitute for alcoholic spirits such as vodka.

"It is a terrible tragedy," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. 

"This type of problem is well known and the president has been informed. Measures must be taken."

Poisonings with surrogate alcohol are a regular occurrence throughout the former Soviet Union as homemade spirits and household products are a cheap alternative among the most socially disadvantaged.

However, the Irkutsk case is one of the deadliest incidents of its kind in years.