When the Issaquena County Board of Supervisors voted Monday to close the regional correctional facility, the impact was felt by far more than just those in Issaquena County.

The city of Vicksburg has had a long-standing agreement with the correctional facility in Issaquena, and one in Madison County, to house inmates there while they await trial.

Wednesday, Mayor George Flaggs Jr. said the city was working to move inmates housed in Issaquena to Madison as soon as possible.

“We wanted to make sure we moved any inmates we had in Issaquena to Madison as soon as possible to get ahead of any other counties and cities rushing to move their inmates,” Flaggs said.

According to Vicksburg Chief of Police Milton Moore, the city currently has four inmates in the Issaquena facility, with only two of those likely to move to Madison. The other two inmates, Moore said, are likely to be released before the Issaquena facility closes on Dec. 17.

“Last year, we reached a verbal agreement with Madison to set aside 40 beds for us at their facility,” Moore said. “Right now, we only have six in Madison currently.”

According to City Attorney Nancy Thomas, the city had agreed to pay Issaquena $28 per day per inmate housed in their facility. The agreement with Madison is $45 per day per inmate.

In a report by the Associated Press, Issaquena Board of Supervisors Eddie Holcomb said the correctional facility, which can hold 300 inmates, is a financial drain on the county.

Issaquena County Sheriff Richard Jones said the board decided to close the jail against his wishes. He says he doesn’t know what the county will do with the inmates after the facility is shuttered.

Holcomb says inmates will have to be transferred to other facilities. But he acknowledged: “Exactly where, we haven’t gotten that far.”

Jones says the facility employs 53 people. They’ll be paid for 30 days after the jail’s closing.