Douglas Tompkins, a noted conservationist and the founder of the North Face and Esprit clothing brands, died on Tuesday after a kayaking accident in the Patagonia region of southern Chile. He was 72.

His death was confirmed by Coyhaique Regional Hospital, where Mr. Tompkins was flown with severe hypothermia. The health service in the Aysén administrative region said Mr. Tompkins was boating with five others on General Carrera Lake when their kayaks capsized in heavy waves.

Chile’s army said that a patrol boat rescued three of the boaters and that a helicopter lifted out the other three. No one else was seriously injured.

A local prosecutor, Pedro Salgado, told radio Bío Bío that the lake was known for unpredictable weather conditions. He said that Mr. Tompkins had spent “considerable amount of time in waters under 4 degrees Celsius,” or under 40 degrees Fahrenheit.