Up to 60,000 people could visit the store over the opening weekend

Hundreds of shoppers had to leave the Cardiff Bay branch of Swedish furniture giant Ikea on Thursday morning when the fire alarm went off the first time close to midday.

Around 900 customers and 400 staff were ordered to stay outside the building in the Grangetown area of the city for 20 minutes while the alarm was reset.

The alarms went off again four hours later, prompting a second evacuation.

This time, smoke from a bonfire opposite the store blowing over the roof was detected by the alarm system.

There had been concerns that the opening of the store - the company's first in Wales and the second largest in the UK - would bring traffic chaos to an area which was already busy.

The rally gets underway in Cardiff

An additional worry was that the opening coincided with the start of the Wales Rally GB.

However, by Thursday afternoon, no problems had been reported.

The store is hoping to attract 15,000 shoppers by the end of its first day. Some camped out overnight to be the first to claim discount vouchers.

The first stage of the rally - the biggest spectator event in Wales will take place later.

City officials launched a new traffic scheme near Ikea to cope with any increase in traffic and have worked with rally organisers to reduce problems.

Cardiff council is confident that its road improvements near the new retailer will prevent the kind of traffic jams that have become notorious features of Ikea stores elsewhere.

Councillor Michael Michael, who is responsible for transport, said: "Cardiff council will be working closely with IKEA, with the organisers of the Wales Rally GB and with transport partners to ensure traffic flows through the city are as smooth as possible.

"We would encourage residents and visitors to the city to plan their journeys carefully, to allow plenty of time to reach their destinations and, if they are visiting the city centre, to think carefully about where they intend to park."

Environmental concerns

Ikea has already employed more than 400 staff, rising to 500 at peak times, at the 26,000ft square building.

The council is hoping the store will provide a major boost to the local economy.

But Friends of the Earth Cymru have serious concerns about the potential environmental impact of more retail development.

"We have a general problem with the way that retail has developed in Cardiff over the last decade," said director Julian Rosser.

The contest will take place over three nights

"There has been a rise in the number of out-of-town shopping centres - all of which are car-based.

"This causes a serious environmental problem in that it increases traffic and pollution in those areas.

"It also creates a social problem - the decline of traditional town shopping centres, which have better transport links, and often the loss of jobs in those centres."

Rally fans will make for the headquarters at the centre of the city early on in the day to see the cars being checked over ahead of the official start of the stage.

The cars will leave City Hall at 1900 GMT heading for Cardiff Bay, where pairs of drivers compete against each other on a floodlit circuit in the Super Specials contest, which takes place over three nights.

The rally will cover large parts of south Wales in stages from Thursday until Sunday.