Jakarta – A video showing residents of North Tapanuli (Taput) searching for rice mixed with soil because the packaging broke after being dropped from a helicopter has gone viral. The North Tapanuli Regency government also apologized and said it would improve the distribution of aid with bags after the incident. “But we continue to improve it, we bagged it for today (yesterday -ed),” Deputy Regent of Taput Deni Parlindungan Lumbantoruan said, as reported by detikSumut, Thursday (4/12/2025). Deni then sent a video showing Taput Regent Jonius Taripar Parsaoran (JTP) Hutabarat distributing aid on Wednesday (3/12). Aid can be seen being bagged and dropped from a helicopter a short distance away. Scroll to continue content “This is today’s process, 3 flights went well and smoothly. The Regent managed to land and greet the public,” he said. As previously reported, the regent of Taput JTP Hutabarat also apologized for the incident in the viral video. The apology became known from a video that was distributed. “I am the regent of North Tapanuli together with the pilot, we first apologize to all the people of North Tapanuli, especially the people in Manalu Purba Village, to be precise in Hajorang,” says JTP Hutabarat in the video seen on Wednesday (3/12). The incident reportedly occurred when JTP wanted to provide assistance in Manalu Purba Village, Parmonangan District. At the time, they were distributing aid to isolated areas and planned to land in a field near the elementary school. “However, there was one incident, namely in Hajorang, that we provided assistance. After going around we wanted to land, I planned to go down to greet the people, I saw there is a school that has a field so we have a target to land there, I invited the pilot to land at the school, then the pilot looked for it to land,” he said. However, when it was 10-15 meters above the ground, it was said that there were electrical cables in the field, so the pilot advised not to land. JTP and his entourage then proceeded to drop 10 5 kilogram bags of rice from that height fearing that the residents would be disappointed. Read more here. (yld/zap)