A 'fire wall' is significant because it can:

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Fire separations are rated barriers (walls/floors) used to separate occupancies, tenants, hazardous areas, or exit enclosures. A fire wall is a special, more robust rated wall designed to allow a building to be treated as separate buildings for code purposes; it typically has structural stability requirements and continuity from foundation to (and often through) the roof.

Worked example(s)
Example: A mixed-occupancy building may use rated separations between Group A-2 (restaurant) and Group R-2 (apartments) if treated as separated occupancies.


A 'fire wall' is significant because it can: