ZHENGZHOU, April 17 (Xinhua) -- A coal mine flood has trapped 12 people in central China's Hunan Province, following earlier reports of a mine blast in China's most populous province of Henan which trapped 33 miners.

The flood occurred at around 3:40 p.m. on Monday at Changcheng Mine in Huangfengqiao town, Zhuzhou city when 31 miners were working underground, said Huang Fangming, an official with the provincial administration of coal mine safety.

Rescue teams have been dispatched from neighboring cities to rescue the trapped miners, but heavy rain has hampered their efforts, Huang said.

The Changcheng Mine is a private mine with a designed production capacity of 30,000 tons a year. Its license and certificates have not expired, Huang said.

Also on Monday, a coal mine in Pingdingshan city of Henan trapped 33 miners.

Forty-two miners were working underground when the blast occurred and only nine miners managed to escape, local government sources said.

Local police are hunting for six people related to the coal mine, including the mine boss, mine manager and two deputy managers, who have absconded.

Zhao Tiechui, head of the State Administration of Coal Mine Safety, and provincial safety officials have arrived at the scene of the accident to direct the rescue operations.