Going down? Terrifying moment lift floor drops into shaft (. . . and it isn't any less frightening when you know it's just a stunt)

Office workers step into a lift, their minds on what tasks the day holds, or perhaps their plans for dinner after work.

Suddenly the lights dim and, with the sound of tortured metal, the floor falls away into a black abyss.



Fortunately, this isn't footage of a terrifying accident but a stunt by a technology company to show how clear the picture is on its new computer monitors.

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Ominous: The floor buckles, the light flickers and hidden speakers simulate the sound of distressed metal



Vertigo: The man is taken aback as the floor tiles seemingly fall away into the yawning mouth of the lift shaft



South Korean conglomerate LG combined nine of its new IPS monitors and fixed them to a floor of a lift in an office building.



After the floor button is pressed, the monitors show a hyper-realistic animation of the floor collapsing into the darkness.

The effect is heightened by an ominous flickering of the lights and sound effects of shrieking metal giving way.

LG did not respond to questions from MailOnline regarding whether the participants were real office workers or actors.

However, either way they will undoubtedly give many workers something to think about next time they press the office lift button.



Calm before the storm: These two colleagues are relaxed when they get in the lift

Illusion: They leap to the side and grab the railings when the fake disaster strikes

All in good fun: The pair laugh at their fright as they leave the rigged lift

For a split second, the hapless victims are fooled into thinking they are about to plunge down into the shaft.



Many jump back or grab the railings when the panels appear to drop away, and one women yelps in terror.



However, the fear is short-lived and most laugh about it afterwards, although one woman storms out of the lift with a face like thunder.

Oblivious: The smart-looking woman gets on the lift. Little does she know what is about to happen...

Yikes! The floor appears to fall away into a long, dark shaft. The woman is stunned

Gravity: She wedges herself into corner and watches the panels, as it dawns on her that she is safe

Relief: The woman opens the door and backs away from the lift