Ignition characteristics of the pool surface of an O/W emulsified gelled hydrocarbon fuel with high internal phase ratio were investigated from the standpoint of spilled-fuel fire prevention. Flash points of miscellaneous gelled fuels with single and multiple components, and of commercial fuels were measured and compared with those of neat hydrocarbon fuels. The Tag Closed-Cup method was used for flash point measurement. A dispersive type infrared gas analyzer (DIR)was used to measure the temperature dependence of the equilibrium vapor concentration of the emulsified fuel. Ignition aspects of an emulsified fuel pool surface were studied and compared with those for neat liquid fuel, here a small hot Nichrome wire adjacent to the pool was used to heat the surface locally. The procedure was also recorded in a 16 mm movie and inter-ferogram form. It was found that whether the neat fuel is a single substance or a multi-component mixture has an effect aside from that of emulsification on the elevation of the flash point. The effect of emulsification on the elevation of flash point was analyzed in terms of the reduction of fuel vapor pressure due to solubilization in emulsion, Another finding is that by heating the surface locally the emulsified fuel pool can be easily ignited, due to the considerable reduction of heat loss from the hot region since there exists no internal convection flow, even when the initial temperature of the emulsion is quite low and the flash point of neat hydrocarbon fuel is higher than the ambient temperature.