The cave of death kills any creature that enters

"Costa Rica's Cave of Death" is located in the tourist complex Recreo Verde, in the Venecia district. From the outside, it has a rocky overhang and many plants scattered around the entrance, looking almost like an ordinary cave. This cave is 2 meters deep and nearly 3 meters long.

However, right in front of the cave entrance is a warning sign "Danger! Do not exceed this point" with a skull and crossbones image. The reason is that any creature that dares to enter the cave will immediately lose its life.

According to Guy van Rentergem, a Belgian explorer, the secret of the Cave of Death is that the concentration of CO2 (carbon dioxide) inside the cave is so high that it can instantly cause all living creatures to become unconscious and then that is cessation of breathing.

At the entrance of the cave there are many corpses of snakes, birds, rodents and other small creatures because they came to the cave entrance to find food, and then were knocked unconscious by CO2 gas.

van Rentergem said that about 30 kg of CO2 escapes from the cave entrance and the cracks behind it every hour, equivalent to the average amount of gas emitted by a car when traveling 256 km.

The amount of CO2 emissions released from the cave can be up to 263 tons a year, equivalent to driving a car 2.2 million km - or 56 times around the world.

Geological experts still cannot pinpoint the exact origin of the above gas, but it is possible that Tu Than Cave is connected to a volcano, and this is a rich source of CO2 gas.

Fortunately, no one has ever died in this area, because the cave is too small for humans to enter. In addition, signs posted at this location also help visitors and residents be aware of the danger.

Jessica Tanner

Update 13 May 2024