Child killed after Christmas tree catches fire in Winston-Salem

A child was killed and another injured in a house fire after a Christmas tree caught on fire, according to the Winston-Salem Fire Department.

WXII reports firefighters responded to the home Tuesday night on Fanning Pointe Lane after receiving a call around 6:28 p.m.

They said the home was fully engulfed when they arrived.

"It was the angriest fire, the only fire I've ever seen in my life," said a neighbor who didn't want to be identified." But the way it took over the whole trailer so fast. When I came out, I heard glass breaking. I didn't know what was going on, I could tell it was coming from the direction of the backyard. And then that's when we seen the flames and the smoke."

The fire department said three people were inside the house at the time. They said one person was killed and another person was injured as a result of the fire.

The victim has not been identified, but fire officials confirmed that the victim was a minor.

The neighbor WXII spoke to said the victim would sometimes play with her children.

"He was a very happy child and loved to be outside," she said.

Crews said the fire started after someone with a lighter got too close to the Christmas tree. Fire officials also confirmed that the fire was accidental.

"Losing your child and at such a young age and you know [it's a] tragic situation," said next-door neighbor LaTonya Park. "It's all around just awful."

Park said her thoughts and prayers, along with those of many of her neighbors, are with the family.

"We're going to come together and we're all going to do whatever we can to help out the family," she said.