CEBU CITY, Philippines – Hundreds of thousand of pilgrims joined the procession held at the sidelines of the 51st International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) in Cebu City on Friday, January 29.

People began gathering around 2 pm on Friday for the mass at the provincial capitol grounds at 4 pm. They then proceeded to Plaza Independencia after the mass for a vigil.

The mass was part of the activities scheduled for the IEC, which began on January 24 and will end on January 31.

Cebu City officials placed the number of people at the procession between 200,000 to 250,000, but IEC organizers estimated 1.5 million people gathered for the event.

Authorities said they did not receive any reports of medical emergencies or other untoward incidents during the procession.

Final mass at SRP ‘rain or shine’

Despite downpours earlier, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said in a press conference on Thursday that the Statio Orbis, or the concluding mass of the IEC, will still be held at the South Road Properties (SRP).

“Rain or shine it will continue,” Palma told reporters on the sidelines of the press conference.

He noted that during Pope Francis’ visit to Tacloban in 2015, it was raining yet  many still attended. While he enourages the participation of everyone he said, “if people are sick, they are not required to go.” (READ: Pope in raincoat says mass in Tacloban)

The downpour in Cebu has caused the area around the shrine of San Pedro Calungsod to become muddy. Because of this, gravel is being placed on top of the mud to make the area easier to walk and stand on.

Organizers expect over 1 million people to attend the Statio Orbis. – Rappler.com