Friends and family breathed a sigh of a relief Saturday at the safe return of New Jersey volunteers from violence-ravaged Haiti.

A group of medical volunteers on their annual mission to bring health care to the poor residents of Haiti got caught in the crossfire of bloody protests wreaking havoc on the region. The civil unrest caused the group to hole up in their hotel for five days.

The group eventually managed to get to a nearby airport as supplies were running low. An airplane carrying the volunteers arrived in the Garden State Saturday morning.

"It makes you appreciate what you have here," says group leader Joe Nuzzi. "It feels good to be home."

The group's mission is sponsored by Upper Saddle River's Church of the Presentation.

Trapped New Jersey missionaries headed home