SINGAPORE - A man allegedly attacked two neighbours with a parang on Monday evening, before returning to his own flat and setting it on fire.

He was later found dead by Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) paramedics who had to force their way into his unit on the eighth floor of a housing block at 4 Marsiling Road.

The man who died in his flat had slashed his neighbour, a 63-year-old cleaner named Majid, and another 60-year-old female neighbour who tried to intervene.

Majid was apparently repairing his bicycle outside his third-storey rental flat when the man set upon him with a parang. It is unclear what sparked the assault.

"He was saying he was in great pain. His daughter was crying out for help in Malay... that's when I went over to help," said resident Madam Jainah Awang, 65.

After the attack, Majid ran down to the second storey to seek refuge in the flat of an elderly resident.

He locked her out in the commotion and instructed the elderly woman's daughter, Sue, who was in the unit, to call the police.

Sue, who is her early 30s, had been visiting her mother with her two sons aged one and five. She said: "There was blood all over him... His wounds looked very serious. I was scared for my mother... and scared to be trapped inside with him because we didn't know what was happening," she said.

Both Majid and the other neighbour who tried to intervene are now at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital in Yishun.

The hospital said that Majid sustained multiple slash wounds and will be undergoing an operation. His condition is stable.

Meanwhile, the second victim sustained minor cuts on her chin and palm. The hospital has placed her under observation.

The police, describing the incident as a "dispute", said they received a call for assistance at about 5pm. They also seized two knives from the scene.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the fire at 5.20pm.

Paramedics found the man lying motionless on the floor after entering the flat, and pronounced him dead at about 6pm.

The fire mostly took place in the living room and SCDF officers extinguished it with a water jet.