Disturbing VR simulation shows how cave explorer got stuck and suffered 'worst death imaginable'

A chilling simulation has detailed how an American man died from the 'worst possible death imaginable' after he became trapped in a Utah cave.

On 24 November 2009, John Edward Jones and his family decided to explore the Nutty Putty Cave, which is located some 55 miles from Salt Lake City.

The tragedy occurred as Jones went out to explore the cave alongside his brother Josh, with the former exploring a part of the cave known as the 'Birth Canal'.

Tragically, the explorer ended up head first and in an unmapped area of the cave.

Jones ended up wedged around 400 feet from the cave's entrance, and despite the best efforts of Josh and rescuers, the downward angle Jones was trapped in took an extreme toll on his body.

"I'm going to die right here. I'm not going to come out of here, am I?" the explorer told rescuers.

The explorer was in Nutty Putty Cave (Find A Grave)

He passed away after 27 hours of rescue attempts, suffering a cardiac arrest.

A VR clip shared by JustinWieb VR has subsequently revealed exactly what it was like inside the cave.

In the clip, Justin explores the cave before revealing the exact spot in which Jones became trapped - and it looks truly terrifying.

"Knowing that John Jones is still down there, although not alive but just knowing that there's a pair of legs sticking up out of a hole in mute silence is utterly terrifying," one person wrote.

While another added: "I can't imagine the sheer amount of panic that came over him when he realized he hit a dead end, plus he was upside down."

Brandon Kowalis - who tried to free Jones - later explained that he was able to say goodbye to his family.

"There was a request to take the radio down to John so that his family could say some words to him," he wrote.

John Edward Jones died in 2009 (Jones family)

"I think it was his father, mother, and wife who spoke to him, telling him that they loved him and were praying for him and that his father had given him a blessing.

"His wife mentioned a feeling of peace, that everything would be OK. She talked to him about 5 to 10 minutes before I told her that we needed to get back to working at getting him out."

After Jones' death, it was decided that retrieving his body would be too dangerous.

An agreement was made to close the cave and the entrance hole has since been filled with concrete.