Bargain hunters injured in crush after Ikea stampede

SEVERAL people were injured and bargain hunters suffered heat exhaustion after a crowd of thousands forced a flagship Ikea superstore to close on its opening night.

Cars were abandoned on a nearby main road and customers were crushed in the chaos which ensued after the furniture store in Edmonton, north London, launched at midnight yesterday.

The new outlet, the biggest Ikea in England, was due to trade for a full 24 hours, but shut up shop within around half an hour after an “unforeseen volume of customers” descended in the early hours.

The company had expected 2,000 customers, but around 6,000 people turned up, attracted by the prospect of huge discounts. The store had been touting several cut-price offers, including a three-seater leather sofa for 65 until 3am and a double bed frame for 45 between 3am and 8am.

People had even Some shoppers had left their cars on London’s busy north circular arterial road, causing severe traffic congestion. But as the store opened its doors, people surged forward, causing a crush at the entrance.

Nine ambulances went to the scene. One person sustained crush injuries, while four others sustained minor injuries. Others were left in shock but no-one was seriously hurt. A man in his early 20s was stabbed in a car park close to the store, in apparently unrelated incident.

He was also taken to hospital and was said to be in a stable condition.

In a statement yesterday, Ikea said it was “deeply shocked, upset and concerned” at what had happened. A spokeswoman said the company had liaised with police and Enfield council prior to the store’s opening.

“On the evening, traffic management, crowd control and the emergency services were in place,” she said.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said police had been at the store from 8pm and intervened as soon as the problems flared.

Assistant Divisional Officer William Bird, of the London Fire Service, described the situation as “extraordinary.” “I have certainly not attended anything like this before,” he said.

Ikea UK deputy country manager John Olie apologised to all customers who were involved in the crush or were disappointed that the store had not opened.

Mr Olie said the trouble started when the initially orderly but long queue outside the store was invaded from all sides, causing a crush. “There was a queue that came in but other people started coming in from other areas,” he said.

“They just came in and pushed and there was a crush. Those that got in were fine, it was the big pressure outside that was the problem.”

Nicola Bird, 41, and Lisa Keepence, 36, who queued from midday on Wednesday told of the terrifying scenes as the queues surged forward. Ms Keepence claimed she was pushed down the stairs by a security guard when the store closed and said her 60-year-old mother had been pushed to the ground and trampled on by the crowds as they rushed forward.

They said that towards midnight other people had been let in to the area around the store, causing the crush. “There were no police and hardly any security guards,” Ms Bird said.

“The security man I was next to looked frightened to death. He was white as a ghost, he didn’t know what to do. There was another security man who was lying on the floor with people trampling on him and there were children there as well.”