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Automatic suppression refers to fire protection systems that automatically activate to control or extinguish a fire without human action. When heat or smoke is detected, these systems release extinguishing agents—such as water from sprinklers or other agents depending on the system—rapidly and autonomously. This quick, automatic response helps slow or stop the fire's growth, protecting occupants and property until firefighters can intervene. In contrast, compartmentation and barriers are design features that contain fire and smoke by creating separated spaces, not by actively extinguishing it. The Fire Department is the external emergency service that fights fires after they start, not an automatic in-building system. So automatic suppression is the term that best describes automatic systems engineered to suppress fires.