‘Cave of death’ that people are strictly forbidden from entering kills anything that goes inside

People are flooding to social media in horror over a cave which kills anything pretty much as soon as it goes inside.

If you're the sort of person who would do what characters do in horror movies, or really what Aladdin did, then you should probably steer clear of this story unless you want to get any dangerous ideas.

Prepare for a new setting for your nightmares:

The deadly cave is located in Costa Rica, South America, on the edge of the Poas Volcano.

According to The Costa Rica Star, the cave is only small - measuring two meters deep and three meters long - but oh is it mighty.

When it was first discovered, a worker reportedly ended up getting sick - and that was only when he got 'close to the entrance,' not even inside. And animals have died almost instantly after entering.

But why is the cave so deadly?

Well, the cave's oxygen levels are basically non-existent, instead it's filled with carbon dioxide.

"At higher concentrations it leads to an increased respiratory rate, tachycardia, cardiac arrhythmias and impaired consciousness. Concentrations >10 percent may cause convulsions, coma and death. Solid carbon dioxide may cause burns following direct contact," National Library of Medicine notes.

And a team headed up by Guy van Rentergem found the cave produces a whopping 30kg of carbon dioxide every hour, according to Rentergem's YouTube video 'Cave of Death in Costa Rica'.

How did so much carbon dioxide end up in the cave I hear you ask?

No one exactly knows, but one X account has suggested it is of 'organic origin, resulting from underground mineral deposits subjected to high temperatures and pressures in the earth's magma, where oxygen is absent.'

Despite being too deadly to actually enter, the cave is still a popular tourist attraction, nicknamed 'Cueva de la Muerte' (Cave of Death in Spanish).

The tourist center gives a demonstration of just how deadly the attraction is by lighting a torch and poking it into the entrance of the cave, showing how quickly the flame goes out as a result of the lack of oxygen and presence of carbon dioxide.

A sign outside the cave reads: "Danger, no trespassing beyond this point."

So, even if you wanted to go in, you literally can't, not only are you banned from entering - we all know some rule breakers out there - but the entrance is only small enough for animals and birds.

People have been flocking to social media in horror over the deadly cave.

One X user said: "Omg it's terrible."

"Oh... no no," another wrote.

A third commented: "Whoa that's crazy."

And a final resolved: "Yet another cave I'm never entering."

Topics: Environment, Health, World News, US News, Travel

Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck is a Senior Journalist at LADbible Group. She graduated from The University of Manchester in 2021 with a First in English Literature and Drama, where alongside her studies she was Editor-in-Chief of The Tab Manchester. Poppy is most comfortable when chatting about all things mental health, is proving a drama degree is far from useless by watching and reviewing as many TV shows and films as possible and is such a crisp fanatic the office has been forced to release them in batches.