Jan. 9, 2000 — Dr. Robert Johnson, who was seriously injured when the Blackfin boat he was driving struck a mooring line of a Dutch Navy vessel Friday, remains in serious condition at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami.
Johnson, who had recently retired and moved to Water Island from Rochester, Minn., with his wife, Kathy, suffered a compound fracture of the femur, a punctured lung and two crushed vertebrae in the accident. Kathy Johnson was uninjured.
According to his daughter-in-law, Kelli Johnson, Dr. Johnson has been paralyzed by his injuries.
"The doctors are not very hopeful (of his) recovering the full use of his legs," Kelli Johnson told St. Thomas Source.
Kelli Johnson said the family believes in prayer and asked that all who knew Dr. Johnson keep him in their prayers.
Dr. Johnson, who is 69, had retired from practice as an obstetrician and gynecologist due to a pulmonary fibrosis condition. He and his wife were building a home on Water Island where they planned to live out their retirement years, his daughter-in-law said.
However, the family is now making plans for the doctor to return to Rochester, where they are expected to reside, as soon as he is able to travel.
Editor's note: For more information see Kelli Johnson's letter to the Source under Open Forum.
