EVERETT, Mass. -- State and local officials have come up with a plan to try to prevent accidents such as the gasoline tanker explosion that destroyed three homes and left dozens of families homeless in Everett two weeks ago.

NewsCenter 5's Shiba Russell reported that the plan focuses on giving cities and towns more control over their roadways.

Most people in the Everett neighborhood were sleeping Dec. 5 when a wave of fire roared down Main Street near the Sweetser Rotary at the junction of Routes 16 and 99.

A gas tanker that tipped and exploded was carrying nearly 9,500 gallons of gasoline.

The blast leveled two multi-family apartment buildings and destroyed dozens of parked cars. It forced the evacuation of about 145 people, including residents of a nearby senior citizens complex.

"We don't want this to happen again," said one of the fire victims as state and local officials unveiled a proposed bill Tuesday that would give communities the option of banning tanker trucks from traffic rotaries.

State Sen. Anthony Galluccio, who represents Everett, said the legislation would also cover damage liability. Truckers, manufacturers and fuel companies would have to pay up for any damage caused by a tanker accident.

"We're not here to tell Everett what that plan might be. We are here to say that we want to give Everett officials an opportunity to go back to the drawing board and take a look at other alternatives. There may have been a way, through legislation like this, to keep that particular truck off that rotary," Galluccio said.

Under the bill, federal officials also would be asked to improve safety standards for all tanker trucks and be required to mandate that all trucks transporting hazardous materials be equipped with double-walled tanks.

Heavy trucks carry fuel from the nearby Everett Terminal and Distrigas LNG facilities often travel through Everett because a bridge over the Mystic River to Boston and Interstate 93 has been closed to trucks for four years.

The bridge, which is owned by Boston, is slated for repairs, but Gallucio said it's unclear whether any money has been earmarked to pay for the project.

Some truck drivers said they thought the proposal to prohibit trucks from using rotaries instead would be impractical.

"If you did it with cities and towns, you would create such confusion, because there are different companies that go to those stations. So, there would have to be some sort of uniform route, from town to town to town, and there's a lot of gas stations out there," said tanker truck driver Lee Belanger.

Ten of the nearly 50 people who were left homeless by the Dec. 5 tanker explosion continue to live in temporary housing. Everett officials said $40,000 would be given Wednesday to 47 of the people who were left homeless. That's about $850 each. The money comes from a donation fund that was established in their name.