Ecevit found himself under criticism in Izmit, where a massive oil refinery still burned Thursday.

CNN: Aftershock raises fears as Turkey quake toll reaches 7,000

Not least of the government's worries was a violent fire that raged at the country's largest petroleum refinery at Korfez, not far from Izmit.

ECONOMIST: Turkey, flattened and in shock

Brisa's Turkish and Japanese managers have managed to build an export business for tyres from Izmit, the sewage-strewn eastern finger of the Sea of Marmara.

ECONOMIST: Import-import