ATLANTA -- The Braves said an equipment malfunction was the source of confusion in the top of the third inning Tuesday night when an emergency alarm sounded in the ballpark and a disturbing message was posted on the scoreboard.

With Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen batting against Braves pitcher R.A. Dickey, the alarm blared for about five seconds and a message stated that an emergency had been reported in the building and that an evacuation was taking place.

It turned out to be a false alarm.

Dickey paused for a couple of seconds to make his next pitch, but the umpires did not stop play, and the game continued.

A message warning flashes on a sign board in Atlanta on Tuesday. AP Photo/John Bazemore

The Braves tweeted in the fourth inning that "everything is operating normally" and "we apologize for the inconvenience."

An apparent altercation with fans in one of the ballpark restaurants caused the alarm to get sounded.

According to a statement from the Cobb County Police Department, "There never was a security issue or an evacuation of the park. There was a situation in the Chop House, but it was quickly handled. Again, there is no public safety threat at this time."

The false alarm was followed by a rain delay that started in the top of the seventh inning and ended more than three hours later, at 12:51 a.m. local time.

With about 200 fans left in the stands for the ninth inning, Matt Adams singled in the winning run for a 6-5 Braves victory.

This is the Braves' first season at SunTrust Park.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.