A Timberlea woman is recovering after fighting back against a violent home invasion this morning on St. Margarets Bay Road outside of Halifax.

Halifax RCMP say the attack happened at around 3 a.m. on Wednesday at a home in the 2400 block of St. Margarets Bay Road.

The 24-year-old woman was alone when she heard the floors creak and within seconds was attacked. Police say a man jumped on her bed, attempted to choke her and struck her with a metal object.

'Very good job in fighting back'

She then fought back.

"She did a very good job in fighting back and was able to get away from this individual and run to a neighbour's home for help," said Cpl. Dal Hutchinson, speaking for RCMP.

The woman has injuries to her head, face and upper body but is expected to recover. There was no word on whether she is still in hospital.

Neighbours heard screaming

Andrew Brown lives a few houses away from the scene. He said his wife woke him up after she heard a scream in the night.

"I said to her that 'you must be dreaming' ... she walked around the house and then came back and then probably five to eight minutes later we heard a bunch of cop cars coming," said Brown.

Brown said his neighbourhood is usually pretty quiet. He said he was troubled by the violent incident and wondered why it happened.

"It kind of scares you, right? Here is my wife and 15-year-old boy in the house, we're about 150 feet away from where it happened, pitch black dark. What actually is going on if this person's got a gun or what he's doing? It was scary for sure," said Brown.

'We all need to feel safe'

"We all need to feel safe in our homes and this is where neighbours looking out for neighbours is so important," said Hutchinson.

He asked that anyone who suspects foul play around a neighbour's home to reach out and call police.

"It's very important to get to know your neighbours. In this situation, this young lady was able to escape a very violent attack and she reached out to her neighbour for some help," he said.

Don Gaudet lives in the neighbourhood. He said he didn't see anything suspicious last night and feels safe in the neighbourhood.

"Nothing happens around here. I [don't] lock my doors, don't have to worry about it," he said.

"It's still not something you want to hear happening in your neighbourhood."

Police seek information

Police are asking the public to come forward if they have any information about the attack, including anyone who may have seen anyone in the 2400 block of St. Margarets Bay Road around 3 a.m.

It was dark at the time and the victim was unable to give police a description of her attacker.

"It's very important because you may have seen someone that we need to speak with," said Hutchinson.