Driz wrote:

I rent a small single floor appartment on the ground floor near my
college. A couple of days ago water started appearing around 11pm in
our bathroom tiled area. I soaked it up with towels and went to bed.
When I woke up the water had spread a little bit into our living room
making the squishy sound when you step on it.

Turns out the hot water heater in the Appt above us was busted and
leaking straight down into my roomates carpeted bedroom closet(where
our heater is as well) and spreading through the wall into our bathroom
area and into the living room carpet.

Well the landlord came and fixed their waterheater and the leaking
water has stopped. Its the weekend and everything is closed, i have
been left to fix the flooding myself, but Im in college and cant afford
to call a profesisonal and I don't know what I should be doing.

I have been soaking up the water with towels, then washing them and
soaking them again.

The carpets are now just damp, but now the musty smell seems to be
everywhere.

Im worried about the smell and the horror stories about mold and
mildew. Should I leave? What kind of company should I contact to test
for mold, or clean? What responsibilites does my landlord have to
helping me with this?

Sorry, Im alone and ignorant in all this, and learning a life lesson.

Rent a powerful shopvac and get the water up. Then keep fan running
until the carpet and pad is dry. We did this with an area rug when
washing machine hose broke. Area rug was dry in 24 hours. With carpet
pad it is a little iffy, but unless it has been weeks, you probably have
a chance of getting it before the dreaded mold sets in. College
landlords aren't known for good maintenance and generosity, but I would
send him the for the expense. I would also send him a nice letter,
certified mail, informing him so he doesn't dock your security deposit
for the damage. If the floor is wood, then you need time to dry out a
lot of moisture. Keep window open when possible if weather is warm and
dry. In his own interest, the landlord might loan a dehumidifier to
help dry the area before everything rots.