Philippine couple holds wedding in flooded church

Leian Lieza Galang carefully waded through hip-deep floodwater in her wedding gown to marry Gilbert Chico at Saint John the Baptist Church in Hagonoy, north of Manila.

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We were in complete uniform. We did not mind that our gown and coat got soaked.

The church had been partly underwater for nearly a month after heavy seasonal monsoon rains battered the northern third of the Philippines. The parish advised the couple to postpone the ceremony because floodwaters were rising, but they decided to proceed. The priest conducted an abbreviated late-morning ceremony, with fewer than 15 people attending.

“We were in complete uniform. We did not mind that our gown and coat got soaked,” Chico said. The couple arrived together in a rickshaw with an elevated chassis, which kept their clothes dry until they reached the church courtyard. Galang’s dress was altered so she could move more safely through the water.

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The parish had advised them to postpone the wedding due to the rising floodwaters from upstream. It was their decision to proceed.

Video posted on the parish’s Facebook page showed the bride receiving a hug from her parents in front of empty pews decorated with plastic flowers. In one photograph, a boy carried the wedding rings down the aisle while floodwater reached his waist.

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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.

Chico, who works as a rigger in the Middle East, said the wedding had originally been planned for December. An ankle injury from a recreational basketball game brought him home earlier than expected, giving the couple the chance to marry before he returned to work. Wedding photographer Mikko Rey Alfonso said, “They love each other. Nothing could stop their union.”

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They love each other. Nothing could stop their union.