On the Road: Saving lives is Bill Johnson’s calling

BILL Johnson is in the business of saving lives, and not just at the beach.

Leading surgeon Dr Bill Johnson keeps swimmers safe as a volunteer surf lifesaver at Torquay. Picture: Mark Stewart

BILL Johnson is in the business of saving lives, and not just at the beach.

A volunteer surf lifesaver of more than six decades, he just happens to also be a leading surgeon at one of Melbourne’s busiest hospitals.

So when he’s not patrolling the stretch of sand at Torquay, he is a life saver of an entirely different kind.

The program director of surgery for Alfred Health, the associate professor finds the greatest solace when twisting the sand beneath his feet.

He reckons it’s the best of both worlds and has been hooked on the salt air and blue horizon since he signed up as a teenager.

His introduction to the Torquay Surf Lifesaving Club came by way of his father Ian, Aussie cricket captain and member of Don Bradman’s 1948 “Invincibles’’.

“He was away a lot so it was my uncle who first brought us down here,’’ Dr Johnson said.

In the years to follow, surfboards have become shorter and Dr Johnson’s patience longer as he’s diligently kept watch along with a dedicated team including all four of his now adult children.

There has been tragedy and triumph — a tourist left paralysed after a crooked dive and another bloke who almost choked on his false teeth. “He was blue as a badger,’’ Dr Johnson recalled.

But in the end, it’s the enduring circle of friends he’s made and the support network he’s helped create that cemented his membership.

“The people, the conversations and friendships, they mean a great deal,’’ Dr Johnson said. “It’s a special place and it’s important to so many people.’’

— Follow reporter Aaron Langmaid and photographer Mark Stewart as they discover the people and places that make our state so great this summer.

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