Handling alarms on the bridge – a DP incident

While a vessel was recovering scrap metal using an ROV and a crane, an alarm was triggered. The DPO attempted to silence it from the aft command panel and Bridge Alarm System without success. The DPO moved to the forward station (where the alarm originated) but was also unable to silence it there. While attempting to press the silence button on the forward command panel, he accidentally pressed the adjacent "Take" button on the DP panel.

Upon returning to the DP station, the vessel was found in manual LEVER mode instead of DP Mode. Amber alerts were issued to the ROV and crane; the ROV began returning to the TMS, and the crane lifted off the seabed.

Although the situation was quickly brought under control, it is important to note that the outcome could have been significantly more serious had this occurred during a more critical phase of the operation.

• Uncontrolled movement distance: 10 metres
• Event duration: 5 minutes
• Time to regain control: 2 minutes

• The bridge experiences a high volume of alarms from various systems (automation, bridge watch, NAV lights, ARPA, AIS etc), all routed through a single alarm system. This contributes to alarm fatigue and potential alarm blindness.
• The Bridge Alarm System panel was known to freeze. During the incident, the forward panel was frozen, and the source of the alarm could not be identified.
• The alarm silencing process is inconsistent, with options to silence via either the Bridge Alarm System panel or the manoeuvring station. In this case, the “Take” command button—located next to the “Silence” button—was mistakenly pressed. Although the “Take” button requires a double press to activate, It has been observed that multiple presses are sometimes used when attempting to silence alarms, which has been noted and discussed onboard as part of routine operational feedback.