Hopes faded on Thursday for the survival of about 150 people trapped under the mud and rubble of two landslides in Sri Lanka, as heavy rain hampered rescue operations and the death toll from the disaster rose to 41, Reuters reported.

That figure is likely to rise sharply, as authorities battling muddy conditions began to give up hope of reaching 134 people believed to be trapped under rubble at one site, and 16 at another, before time ran out.

"I don't think there will be any survivors," Major General Sudantha Ranasinghe, the officer in charge of the rescue operation, told Reuters.

"There are places where the mud level is up to 30 feet. We will do our best. We will keep going until we can recover the maximum."

Across the island, over 300,000 people have been forced from their homes after days of torrential rains. There were several other landslides across the island as well.

Disaster management authorities said the 300,000 people displaced across the country by the disaster had been sent to 610 safe locations.

(With inputs from Reuters)