Crews began installing fences around Bank of New York Mellon's empty Downtown park about 6:30 a.m., hours after Occupy Pittsburgh left the park for good.
"The park is closed, and we will begin planning for the extensive repairs," BNY Mellon spokesman Ron Gruendl said.
About 60 deputies arrived at Mellon Green at 5:15 a.m. Many of them, along with bomb-sniffing dogs, searched the park.
Sheriff William Mullen said deputies didn't find anything except for garbage and some rats. He added that there had been a threat made online a few days ago that a possible explosive device was going to be left behind.
Mullen said that his department and other law enforcement agencies were prepared to evict any protesters this morning, three days after Allegheny County Common Pleas Court Judge Christine A. Ward's deadline for protesters to leave the park.
That became unnecessary yesterday, as protesters left peacefully after an emotional farewell and a small protest march along several Downtown streets. The group cleaned most of the park, but left behind some bags filled with garbage, several tents and a "Trojan horse" assembled from wooden pallets.
Occupy Pittsburgh set up an encampment at the park on Oct. 15 as part of its protest against corporate greed and unfair economic policies. At first, the encampment had about 100 tents, but as the months went on, the group slowly shrank. During the last couple of months, few protesters stayed in the camp overnight.
The group targeted BNY Mellon, PNC Bank, UPMC and other corporations in the city, and said the protests will continue. A Downtown march against high health care costs is scheduled for noon Saturday, and the group also is in the early stages of planning a general strike for May 1.
