A devastating fire that tore through the waterfront home of Circuit Court Judge Diane Goodstein and her husband, former state senator Arnold Goodstein, caused a shocking tragedy earlier this month on the coast of South Carolina.
The large fire broke out around noon on October 1, leaving three injured–the former Democratic senator himself being one of them.
The massive three-story four-bedroom, four-bath house in Edisto Beach was engulfed by the flames very quickly, towering thick black smoke billowing into the sky. It has been reported that the fire was so intense that Arnold Goodstein, former Democratic representative for Charleston County, was forced to make a desperate escape, jumping from the first-floor window as the flames took hold.
After that daring leap, Mr. Goodstein sustained multiple fractures. He became the third casualty. It was a dramatic community effort, with neighbors and first responders using kayaks to assist in taking the injured for treatment. All three were taken to the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), and one, confirmed as the former senator by family, was in urgent need of airlifting. The other two injured remain unnamed.
Fortunately, Judge Diane Goodstein wasn’t home at the time of the fire, as she was out walking on the beach with her dog.
The State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) is actively investigating the cause of the devastating fire. Although social media was rife with videos of the burning home, along with unverified notes about an explosion or an arson, the authorities maintain that a cause declaration is pending.
Judge Goodstein is a South Carolinian and has been a Circuit Court Judge since her original election in May 1998. Arnold Goodstein, her husband, served a number of terms in the 1970s in the South Carolina House and Senate. They have two children together, Arnold Samuel Goodstein II and Eve Schafer Goodstein
