Philippine couple marry inside flood-hit church

A Philippine couple went ahead with their wedding despite waist- to hip-deep floodwaters covering their Catholic

A Philippine couple went ahead with their wedding despite waist- to hip-deep floodwaters covering their Catholic church, turning their ceremony into an extraordinary display of determination and love.

Leian Lieza Galang and Gilbert Chico exchanged vows on Tuesday at Saint John the Baptist Church in Hagonoy, a town north of Manila. Much of the church had been submerged after weeks of heavy monsoon rainfall.

Wearing a white off-shoulder wedding gown and carrying a bouquet of white flowers, Galang carefully made her way through the muddy water inside the church. Chico wore his wedding suit as the couple continued with their planned ceremony despite the difficult conditions.

“We were in complete uniform. We did not mind that our gown and coat got soaked,” Chico said.

The couple, both in their 30s, were married during a shortened late-morning ceremony conducted by the parish priest. Wedding photographer Mikko Rey Alfonso said the parish had advised the couple to postpone the event because floodwaters from upstream areas were continuing to rise.

However, the couple decided that they wanted to proceed with their wedding.

Alfonso said the church had been partly underwater for almost a month. Parish staff therefore worked to make the ceremony possible while keeping the couple and their small group of guests safe.

The unusual wedding was attended by fewer than 15 people. Photographs and video from the ceremony showed empty pews decorated with plastic flowers while floodwater covered much of the church floor.

In one striking image, a young boy carrying the wedding rings could be seen walking down the aisle with water reaching his waist.

The couple also took precautions before entering the flooded church. They arrived together in a modified rickshaw with an elevated chassis, allowing them to keep their wedding clothes largely dry until they reached the church courtyard.

Galang’s wedding dress was also altered before the ceremony. The train was shortened so she could move more safely through the floodwater.

The flooding came after unusually heavy seasonal monsoon rains battered the northern part of the predominantly Catholic Philippines throughout August. The prolonged rainfall triggered landslides and flash floods, with the latest official figures putting the death toll at 34.

Despite the dangerous conditions, the couple refused to let the flooding cancel a day they had planned for months.

Chico, who works as a rigger in the Middle East, said their wedding had originally been scheduled for December. Instead, the couple found themselves exchanging vows inside a flooded church.

Alfonso said the difficult circumstances could not overshadow the couple’s commitment to one another.

“They love each other. Nothing could stop their union,” he said.