Global National: Feb. 27, 2020 | Coronavirus has 'pandemic potential' as cases rise globally

On this episode of Global National, Crystal Goomansingh reports on the growing fears of a novel coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 has now spread to at least 50 countries, making tens of thousands of people ill. Global News looks at the drastic steps governments around the globe are taking to mitigate the risks. Also, a woman in California has become America's first confirmed COVID-19 case of "unknown" origin. Jackson Proskow explains the mystery surrounding this case, how thousands of people in California are now being monitored and how the case exposes a gap in the country's response to the virus.

Meanwhile, in Canada, after weeks of protests and rail blockades, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett is in northern B.C. to meet with the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs opposed to the Coastal GasLink pipeline. As Sarah MacDonald reports, Bennett's visit comes just hours after the meeting was abruptly cancelled over what's been labelled a miscommunication. Plus, a rail blockade on Kahnawake Mohawk territory near Montreal is entering its third week, in a show of solidarity with Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs against Coastal GasLink's pipeline project in northern B.C. Mike Armstrong explains why a court injunction to remove protesters hasn't been acted upon.

Alberta's UCP government has tabled its second budget in just four months, as the province continues to suffer through a prolonged downturn in the oil and gas sector. But as Heather Yourex-West reports, the government says hope is on the horizon.

And Canadian feds have launched new protections for a certain aquatic creature. Ottawa is ramping up measures meant to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales, following the death of dozens in Canadian waters over the past three years. Ross Lord reports on the new rules, and why researchers say the new rules are similar to previous ones.

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