A flash flood on the Budhi Gandaki River in Nepal's Gorkha district swept away homes and bridges on Sunday and damaged part of a hydropower station.

Nepal's army said 95 people were rescued, including nine foreigners. No deaths have been reported, but five people are missing. More than 200 homes were damaged and more than 650 people were affected, Nepal's disaster agency said.

The water rose fast. Dharmaraj Uprety, head of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, told the Kathmandu Post's sister paper that the danger level at Arughat was about 5 meters. The river reached 8.3 meters and swept away the bridge there. Downstream villages were buried in mud.

Uprety said officials learned of the flood around 6:20 a.m. and sent text-message alerts to downstream areas 20 minutes later. That gave people time to climb to higher ground, he said.

"We never imagined a flood of this size," Ganesh Karki of Jagatbagar told the Kathmandu Post, according to the BBC. He and others fled about 500 meters uphill into a forest after a warning call. "We are afraid to return home," he said.

Some villages are cut off and can be reached only by air. The army sent four helicopters. Officials are still looking into what caused the surge.

The flood hit as families prepared for the first day of Dashain, Nepal's biggest festival. Nepal is still recovering from floods near its border with Tibet two months ago, which the BBC reports killed more than 1,400 people.

What we know: Sunday's flood damaged more than 200 homes, 95 people were rescued, and five are missing.
What we don't: What set off the flood, whether the missing will be found, and when cut-off villages will get road access back.