Whanganui mayor Hamish McDouall says the flood of June 2015 and the near-miss this year is the most obvious way the district has been impacted by climate change.
He said Whanganui had to assume similar events would happen again but was encouraged with how people responded to the predicted flooding in April.
"How resilient are the Whanganui people? I just think it's extraordinary," he said.
"I think people are a lot more prepared. People weren't sitting in their homes saying 'why do I have to move'?"
Mr McDouall said while most people in the badly affected Anzac Parade had returned, a handful of homes had been condemned after the June 2015 event.
"Individual circumstances will be different but, for sure, I think most people have had their homes refurbished if they were on Anzac Parade.
"The individual circumstances we should never ignore just because we've had an increase in civil defence awareness.
"We can't ignore the fact that some people were severely affected."
The flood had also started a conversation around flood mitigation with Horizons Regional Council investigating managed retreat of some homes among other options.
"It's really focused attention on climate change and the effects of severe weather events," Mr McDouall said.
"It's the most obvious way that Whanganui has been affected by overall climate change."