A Philippine couple has held their wedding ceremony in a Catholic church submerged in hip-deep floodwater, refusing to let weeks of heavy rainfall stop their plans.
Leian Lieza Galang and Gilbert Chico tied the knot on Tuesday at Saint John the Baptist Church in Hagonoy town, Bulacan province, north of Manila, despite the church being partially flooded for nearly a month.
The bride, dressed in an off-shoulder white wedding gown and carrying a bouquet of white flowers, carefully waded through the murky water to meet her groom.
“We were in complete uniform. We did not mind that our gown and coat got soaked,” Chico told AFP.
The couple, both in their 30s, were married during an abbreviated late-morning ceremony conducted by the parish priest, according to their wedding photographer, Mikko Rey Alfonso.
Wedding holds in flooded church. Credit: Facebook| St. John the Baptist Parish Hagonoy, Bulacan
The parish had reportedly advised the couple to postpone the ceremony because of rising floodwaters from upstream. However, they chose to proceed with their plans.
“The parish had advised them to postpone the wedding due to the rising floodwaters from upstream. It was their decision to proceed,” Alfonso said.
“Since they wanted to see it through, we the servants of the parish did the best we could to make this a special day for them.”
The bride and groom arrived at the church aboard a rickshaw with an elevated chassis, which helped keep their wedding clothes dry before they entered the flooded church.
To make it easier for Galang to move through the water, her wedding gown was altered to shorten its train.
Fewer than 15 people attended the ceremony, while photographs from the wedding showed floodwater covering much of the church interior.
In one photograph, a young boy could be seen carrying the wedding rings down the aisle, with water reportedly reaching his waist.
A video posted on the parish’s Facebook page also showed Galang being embraced by her parents in front of empty pews decorated with plastic flower arrangements.
The wedding was originally scheduled for December, but Chico, who works as a rigger in the Middle East, returned home earlier than expected after suffering an ankle injury while playing basketball.
He decided to use the period of his recovery to marry Galang before returning to work.
“They love each other. Nothing could stop their union,” Alfonso said.
The wedding took place amid severe monsoon rains that have affected large parts of the Philippines.
Heavier-than-usual seasonal rains battered the northern third of the predominantly Catholic country throughout August, triggering flash floods and landslides.
According to the latest official figures, at least 34 people have died as a result of the flooding and landslides.
Despite the difficult conditions, Galang and Chico went ahead with their ceremony, turning their flooded church wedding into an unusual symbol of their determination to begin their marriage as planned.