HOLYOKE -- A team of seven Massachusetts police officers providing humanitarian assistance to Hurricane Maria victims in Puerto Rico was suddenly sent home after a miscommunication about a side mission they ran to a school and some neighborhoods and families about 80 miles south of San Juan.

Police chiefs from four departments where the seven team members worked have now sent a letter to the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association describing the problem so other commanders can be informed if they decide to send officers to help in Puerto Rico, Holyoke Chief Police James Neiswanger said.

"It is extremely concerning that there appears to be an apparent breakdown in this critical communication network whether intentional or technological ... We wanted each of you to have all the facts as we know them to make an informed decision," the letter said. It is signed by Neiswanger, Easthampton Chief Robert Alberti, Hampden Chief Jeff Farnsworth and Chelsea Chief Brian Kyes.

Police from departments across the state, including those in Holyoke, Easthampton and Hampden, responded for a request for bilingual officers to assist in hurricane relief in Puerto Rico. Those officers left on Oct. 7 for the island, the letter said.

The officers were divided into three teams of seven that worked with Puerto Rican authorities. The team in question worked 12-hour shifts patrolling with Puerto Rican officers in the Carolina area outside San Juan, Neiswanger said in an interview with The Republican.

Several days later, that team requested and received permission to check on family members and assist in relief efforts in Ponce, which is about 80 miles south of San Juan, the letter said. In an interview with The Republican, Neiswanger declined to provide details of how permission for the side mission was requested and received.

The team rented two SUVs, filled them with water, meals ready to eat and other supplies and left for a one-day trip to Ponce on Oct. 11, Neiswanger said. They first checked in with the local and state police departments and then visited a school, neighbors and several families in the area.

Officers even posted a heartwarming video of Holyoke Lt. Isaias Cruz being greeted by family members dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Maria on the Holyoke Police Facebook page.

But when they arrived back to the docked ship in which they were being housed after their 12-hour trip, they learned that upper-level officials were not happy about their mission. The Puerto Rican State Police decided to send the seven officers back to the U.S. mainland on Oct. 12, Neiswanger said.

"It appears that the upper level command structure in place for this overall mission in providing security for disaster relief may not have been aware of this particular deployment by the seven local municipal officers," the letter said.

"This is a miscommunication which was all blown out of proportion and they were advised they had to leave," Neiswanger told The Republican.

Police, who wanted to continue the humanitarian effort, then contacted the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency to ask for help to clear up the misunderstanding. State officials tried to contact emergency management officials in Puerto Rico, but their phone calls were not returned, he said.

"They went back to the ship and were hoping to do more deployments in a similar fashion because they saw the need was so great in the island. Instead, they were told to go home," Neiswanger said.

The seven officers were then flown by military plane and landed at 3 a.m. in Savannah, Georgia, where they were left with no way to get home. Their plight was further complicated by the fact all seven had their service weapons with them, making it harder to arrange a commercial flight in a timely manner, Neiswanger said.

Farnsworth was able to arrange for the owner of a private jet to fly to Georgia and return the officers to Westfield Barnes Regional Airport on Friday afternoon, Neiswanger said.

Farnsworth could not immediately be reached for comment.

While no officers from the departments will be involved in further efforts, Neiswanger said he does not want the humanitarian efforts to Puerto Rico tainted because the need is so great on the island.

"The message is this is a great humanitarian effort and the last we want to do is stop that for the good citizens of Puerto Rico," he said. "They were doing their jobs and they were doing it well, and we are sorry this miscommunication occurred."

"We are proud of our officers and we stand by our actions, and we are sorry they were rotated out early," the chief said.