COLUMBIA, S.C. - Bags over gas pumps will be a familiar site at some gas stations through this weekend because of the fuel shortage on the East Coast caused by Hurricane Katrina, according to the South Carolina Petroleum Marketers Association.

"We're going to see more outages and shortages over the next couple of days," association Executive Director Sims Floyd Jr. said Thursday.

The pipeline from the Gulf Coast that provides most of the gasoline to all but the coastal areas of South Carolina has started running again, but only at about a quarter of capacity, said Kay Clamp, executive director of the South Carolina Petroleum Council.

That means with the Labor Day weekend looming, it could take days for more gas to flow to dry stations, Clamp said.

Floyd said the petroleum association has recommended retailers limit gasoline purchases to $30 or 10 gallons until more fuel comes into the state.

"We're going to have some tough days ahead of us," Sims said. "People need to cooperate, conserve and know the product is going to be in short supply."

State agencies have responded to the gas shortage by curtailing all nonessential travel. For example, the state Transportation Department will not cut grass along rights of way until the fuel supply has improved.

Columbia officials plan to alter garbage collection schedules to save gas and have developed a tier system to determine which agencies will get fuel first.

The problems began Wednesday as customers - worried about problems making and transporting gasoline from the Gulf Coast - swarmed gas stations and prices rose to $3 or more a gallon in many places.

Rumors flew around the Internet, including an e-mail that said Gov. Mark Sanford was going to shut down all the pumps in the state.

Sims said people need to listen to news reports instead of urban legends. "These rumors don't do anything but waste time and energy," he said.

The shortages have been caused by disruptions in the Colonial and Plantation fuel pipelines after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast early Monday morning. The pipelines go through the Upstate and provide gas from Texas to New York.

Both the Colonial Pipeline Co. and the Plantation Pipe Line Co. have said they should be pumping more fuel through their lines before this weekend, Clamp said.

The shortages aren't as big of a problem along the coast because gasoline is brought in by ship, Clamp said.

Clamp warns gasoline supplies could fluctuate during the next month as companies assess damage to refineries and oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. "We never envisioned a disruption of this magnitude," she said.

One factor that could improve the situation is companies away from the East Coast have plenty of gasoline and should begin to bring the excess supply to the area, Clamp said.

To help that effort, the governor has received permission to waive federal regulations involving how long fuel tank drivers can be on the road and how much trucks can weigh to help get more gas into South Carolina.

Sanford also urged conservation, but fell short of telling people not to travel over the coming Labor Day weekend.

"One thing we need to guard against is panic-buying," Sanford said. "It exacerbates the problem."

Sanford, who planned to spend the weekend at his family's farm in Beaufort, said "less is more from the standpoint of travel. ... There's no place like home."

Tourism officials along the coast are still encouraging travelers to come to the beach, where stations have plenty of gas and the weather is expected to be gorgeous.

As far as skyrocketing prices, the governor said those were simply a function of the market and likely would come down when the pipelines are running.

He said his office was monitoring prices to see if there was any price-gouging.

Attorney General Henry McMaster said his office would prosecute anyone breaking the law, but raising prices to an "unconscionable" level is only illegal if a state of emergency has been declared. "So far, we have no evidence that any willful criminal conduct has taken place in regards to the gas shortage," McMaster said. "But that could change."

Sims said blame for the high prices shouldn't necessarily be directed to store owners.

"The retailers are simply reacting to the steep increase in wholesale prices," he said.

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Associated Press writer Jeffrey Collins contributed to this report.