A 13-year-old boy with autism died in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, this week after accidentally lighting the Christmas tree inside his family’s mobile home on fire.

The fire broke out at around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, the Winston-Salem Fire Department told The Associated Press.

Brandon Gonzalez Contreras, 13, used a lighter to set the blaze, which spread through the residence. Family members said it was an accident.

A caregiver and a 5-year-old girl were also inside the home and managed to get out.

The caretaker, unnamed by authorities, remains hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, according to local Fox affiliate WGHP. Authorities haven’t said whether the girl, who was also injured, is still in the hospital.

Dr. Anne Shepler, a forensic pathologist at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center who autopsied Brandon’s body, told the Winston-Salem Journal that he died from breathing smoke and fumes.

“He always made me happy with his smile. He was my world. It’s been three days of torture. … I miss him so much, and I am dying of sadness,” Brenda Contreras Juarez, his mother, told WGHP Friday.

Fire officials told the Journal that the blaze caused $30,000 in damages to the structure and contents of the family’s home.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.