Mr Keys, whose background is urban planning and natural disasters, will pen six articles for the Mercury that examine Maitland’s flood history, ­starting next Friday.

That series will mark seven years since severe weather ­tested the levy protecting central Maitland and Lorn. 

“The thing with the June floods is the frequency,” Mr Keys said.

Since 1820 Maitland has recorded 12 floods above 10.5 metres, the major flood level, at the Belmore Bridge – and five of them were in June.

Mr Keys moved from his native Canada to Maitland in 1975 to study urban regional development with the University of Wollongong.

In 1990 he joined the SES where he applied his new found interest in floods and rose to the rank of deputy director general.

Although he has retired he continues to write about floods and flood mitigation.

“I came to enjoy Maitland and the main street with its heritage buildings,” he said.

“Having said that, there are times when the river has risen to bite it.”

In the early hours of June 7, 2007, the Hunter River peaked at 10.7 metres, just shy of the ­forecast 11.1 metres.

A deep east coast low ­bucketed the coast and caused torrential rain in the Wollombi Brook near Singleton but below Glenbawn Dam.

It cut the New England Highway between the railway station roundabout and the Pvt PZ Trzecinski bridge, but spared central Maitland and Lorn which were evacuated as a precaution.

Mr Keys said the June 1949 flood rated in the city’s three classic floods, alongside the 1955 (12.1 m) and 1893 (11.3 m) events which both occurred in February. 

In 1949 the Hunter River peaked at 10.96 metres on June 18.

“The message is beware of June,” he said.