Fires devastate California, Oregon and Washington 0:38
(CNN) ––
As wildfires ravage Oregon, a boy and his dog died huddled inside a car, where they sought to protect themselves from the flames.
Wyatt Tofte, 13, died Tuesday in the wildfires in Marion County, Oregon, along with his 71-year-old grandmother, Peggy Mosso, a family spokesperson told CNN.
READ: At least 15 people have died in wildfires in California, Oregon and Washington
Mosso was found dead in a car that caught fire, while her daughter Angela, also Wyatt Tofte's mother, stood nearby to try to save her.
Angela survived but is in critical condition.
Her husband and Tofte's father, Chris, also survived.
"Our family is devastated by the loss of our loving 13-year-old Wyatt and his loving grandmother Peggy at the Santiam Fire in the early morning of September 8," said a family statement.
“After a long search, Wyatt was found in a car with his dog on his lap, but unfortunately he was unable to escape the fire.
Angie is in critical condition with burns all over her body, ”the statement said.
“We want to thank all the emergency personnel and the people who helped in the search.
Our family appreciates the love and support we have received from everyone during this terrible tragedy.
Search amid the fires
The Salem Statesman Journal reported Chris Tofte's search for his wife, son and mother-in-law as fires raged around them.
On Tuesday, he found his wife badly burned walking down the path to their home when he returned with a borrowed trailer to retrieve his belongings.
At first he did not recognize her, he told the newspaper, and then he told her that he was looking for his wife and son.
"I'm your wife," Angela replied, according to the Statesman Journal.
Wyatt Tofte was in a different car, and the family assumes he ran and got into the vehicle thinking it would be protected from the surrounding flames, the family spokesperson explained.
Wyatt, just the sweetest kid;
He loved fishing, playing video games, like many children, just a very sweet and polite boy, ”said Susan Vaslev, a spokeswoman for the family.
LOOK: Hundreds of thousands of hectares burn in Oregon, California and Washington and the weather conditions do not help
At least four people died from the fires in the states of Oregon and Washington.
While wildfires in California have killed at least 20 people since mid-August.
In southern Oregon, fires have destroyed the small towns of Phoenix and Talent, home to 11,000 people together.
"This could be the largest loss of human life and property due to wildfires in the history of our state," Oregon Governor Kate Brown said Wednesday.
Oregon Victims