evacuation shelter; place of refuge
A designated safe location where people go during disasters such as earthquakes, floods, or typhoons. Often a school gymnasium or community center.
After the earthquake, the nearby elementary school became an evacuation shelter.
Food and blankets were distributed at the shelter.
避難所 is a shelter for evacuees fleeing a disaster, stressing temporary safety, while 収容所 implies institutional housing under authority, often for longer or forced stays.
避難所 is an officially designated evacuation shelter for disasters, while 逃げ場 is any place or means of escape, physical or figurative.
避難所 refers to a shelter people flee to in an emergency, while サンクチュアリ emphasizes sacredness or protection rather than emergency refuge.
Compound of 避難 (ひなん, 'evacuation, taking refuge') + 所 (しょ, 'place'). The reading じょ for 所 is a common rendaku form in compounds.