( CNN ) -- With the deadly fertilizer plant explosions in the city of West on its mind , Texas will develop an online database that will allow residents to view local facilities that hold hazardous materials . The creation of the database , which does not require a legislative vote , was announced by state Rep. Joe Pickett , D-El Paso . Residents will be able to input their ZIP code into the database , which will then show the nearest hazardous sites , Pickett told CNN Tuesday . Pickett is the chairman of the state legislature 's Homeland Security and Public Safety Committee . In April , a fire at the facility operated by West Fertilizer Company set off two explosions that registered on seismographs as a magnitude-2.1 earthquake and were felt 50 miles away . The plant held 270 tons of highly volatile ammonium nitrate on site , according to regulatory records . Records : Texas plant had n't told feds about explosive fertilizer . The new database will not only list sites with high volumes of ammonium nitrate , but also other volatile chemicals , Pickett said . There are 16 sites , mostly located in unincorporated areas , that house large amounts of ammonium nitrate , the lawmaker said . There may be up to 129 sites listed on the hazardous materials database , with varying levels of risk assigned to them , he said . The site will also provide information for contacting authorities about concerns about such facilities . A launch date for the database will be announced in about two weeks , Pickett said . The blasts in West leveled a portion of the town , damaging numerous homes , a nursing home and the town 's high school and middle school . FEMA denies West additional aid . Authorities have n't publicly determined what caused the deadly situation , saying it could have started from a spark from a golf cart , an electrical short or could have been set intentionally . In May , authorities announced they had launched a criminal investigation into the case , though no one has been charged .
New Texas database will track hazardous chemicals . Residents will be able to see online nearby facilities that have such chemicals . Comment: